


Subservience

by Steena



Category: Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers: Prime
Genre: AU, Abuse, Abusive Relationships, Additional Warnings In Author's Note, Chastity Device, Consent for the wrong reasons, Dark, Dark energon/drug use, Dom/sub, Domestic Violence, Dubious Consent, Gaslighting, Hand Jobs, Humiliation, Manipulation, Masturbation, Medical Procedures, Megatron is Awful, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Praise Kink, Sensory Deprivation, Some canon events and topics, Soundwave has a crush, Sticky Sexual Interfacing, Unhealthy Relationships, Violence, dom/sub not done right, exploitation of a praise kink, reluctant masturbation as a show
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-26
Updated: 2019-11-15
Packaged: 2020-07-12 05:54:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 34,168
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19941298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Steena/pseuds/Steena
Summary: Megatron is brought back from space, and Soundwave — who is a little more devoted to his Lord than is advisable — is relieved. Megatron goes on to use dark energon, and when Starscream decides to stay out of the Decepticon leader's berth, Megatron turns his interest to Soundwave. The Communications Officer is ecstatic, because who wouldn't be when their crush of the millenias finally show some interest? But the things Megatron wants keep pushing Soundwave's limits,  and they tumble into a downward spiral fed by Megatron's increased addiction to dark energon and his personality changes. The question is how far Megatron can push Soundwave before the Communications Officer realizes how very unhealthy their relationship really is?This is going to be an uncomfortable ride, full of manipulation, dubious consent, and emotional abuse.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Marysol (YarAnrethe)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/YarAnrethe/gifts).



He was ecstatic when Megatron returned. It wasn't that he couldn't function without his Lord and Master guiding him, and Starscream was surprisingly easy to work with when Megatron was not around. It was more that he was comfortable with someone else holding the reins in a firm grasp, and that someone rightfully was Lord Megatron. _And he missed watching their Lord as he sat in his chair, overseeing their work for the Decepticon cause._

Dabbling with the dark energon seemed risky, but according to his calculations, the chance of it helping them outweighed the risks. Granted that it wasn’t by much, but they did. And it was Megatron’s idea, so of course it was a good idea.

Of course his Lord would spend his first night back with Starscream. It wasn't unexpected, but still… The third in command watched with his proximity sensors as the two increasingly inebriated mechs pawed at each other while Soundwave was still working. Starscream clambered into Glorious Leader's lap, there was clumsy stroking of quivering wings, the sound of metal against metal, and Soundwave felt his array heat up when he teeked the cloying fields, heavy with arousal. It was times like these that made his sensitivity a true curse, because for him, there would be nobody to release the charge that was building inside his panel. Then the Decepticon leader, and his second in command, headed for Megatron's quarters. Soundwave rose from his chair by the consoles and headed for his own quarters. His work was done, had been for quite some time, but he had lingered to watch Megatron, thrilled to have him back.

Oh, he wasn't so foolish as to think that Megatron would choose him for his homecoming night. It was a very rare occurrence that his Lord wanted him to grace the Warlord's berth. But the last time was a very long time ago, and it would've been nice to know that Megatron still appreciated him.

The Empath remotely locked the door behind him, engaging all of his security measures out of habit. _One could never be too certain_. Some Autobots were very good at infiltrating their ships — and getting out again — without being caught.

He stretched out on his berth, powering down his visor and offlining his optics behind the blank screen. Sifting through his memories, he quickly found what he was looking for: one of the few times Megatron had chosen him to be the company for the night. This was a favorite, because that time, Soundwave actually overloaded too.

The few times he indulged himself with self service, he did it thoroughly, and this time wasn't different. There were sub files to the memory pack, files that would allow him to be as close to reliving it as possible: sensations gathered from his plating and protoform, every single thing his field had picked up, sounds, smells, even the things he tasted with his data cable. Just the thought of that memory made his valve go slick behind his still closed panel, and he arranged himself against the pillows to be comfortable before starting it. He really wanted to savor this rare indulgence.

Starting the replay of the memory was a pleasant illusion of vertigo before he was fully immersed. His data cables slipped down his ventral plating to his heated core, sensitive filaments sliding through slick folds, while he recalled the way Megatron asked him join the Decepticon leader in his quarters. The lubricant tingled against the filaments, and the feather light touches to his node slowly and sensually built his charge as he thought about the way Megatron had bent him over the desk, rutting into him with powerful thrusts. It had been such a heady feeling, to finally be allowed to serve his Lord in the most base way again, and he had been beside himself, arching his back to allow better access, digits scrabbling against the smooth surface of the desk. Megatron actually grabbed his data cable, pinning it against the desk, and he toyed with the sensitive filaments, something he never had cared about doing before. It was on the verge of too much, the filaments so sensitive, and of course Glorious Leader was a strong mech, but Soundwave wouldn't complain. _Never._ If that was what his Lord wanted to do and found arousing, of course Soundwave would allow him that indulgence.

The entire scenario had been so very arousing, and he had allowed Megatron free reign of that data cable, focusing on the other one. Slipping it between his thighs, he had started toying with his node, stroking it ever so slightly.

Soundwave mimicked the memory, slipping the filaments through his slick folds, pinching the other with his digits. _If Megatron had wanted him to feel some pain, then that was what he was going to feel now too_. The Drone was well aware that some enjoyed the edge of pain, thought that it heightened the pleasure, but he had never been able to understand it. _Perhaps that was why Starscream had a tendency to get on Megatron’s nerves? Maybe that was the reason the Seeker often came out worse for the wear after their trysts? Maybe that was the reason why Megatron so rarely chose Soundwave to relieve his carnal needs?_

The thought was most interruptive and unwelcome, and Soundwave forced it to a background process, focusing on the memory again. He was not going to let the Seeker ruin this too.

Folding the grippers on the data cable, he finally pushed inside, allowing the filaments to tease his inside nodes, sensitive after so long without stimulation. It made it all the more exciting, when the lightest touch could light up his sensory net, the exquisite way the lubricant tingled against the filaments combining with the almost tickling sensation against his nodes. He could easily do this for hours, keep himself teetering on the edge, just to back off before he fell over, and then slowly bring himself up again.

That night though, he wasn't in a patient mood. His Lord was back, and the mere thought of that brought his charge higher, filled him with want, and along with the memory, he was getting there quickly, plunging his data cable in and out at a steady pace. _Perhaps Megatron's absence would make the Warlord want Soundwave to come to his quarters soon? Perhaps one of these days, he would get to make a new memory such as this?_

Soundwave was not one for fantasies, considered wishful thinking to be a waste of time. But for now, he indulged himself, allowed his processor to conjure up things him and Megatron would do when he was the one splayed out on Glorious Leader's berth. _Stretched out on his back, legs spread wide, Megatron thrusting into him at a steady rhythm, just like this…_

He overloaded so hard he was thrown into reboot, entire frame quaking as he came, system after system shutting down in the rapid succession of satisfaction.


	2. Chapter 2

The first signs of Megatron using dark energon were surprisingly subtle. He had always been courageous, and that he got more bold wasn't that much of a difference. His temper had always been short, but Starscream did seem to wear the marks of a beating a little more often these days. His ambition was inflating. Sure, that had been a long going process too, going from wanting equal rights, to wanting to be the leader of Cybertron, on to conquering new worlds. But now he was talking about conquering the galaxy, and Soundwave had even heard muttered words of conquering Cosmos. The Empath was pretty certain that Megatron didn't mean the plump little flying saucer of an Autobot who hadn't been spotted for ages.

It didn't really affect his work though, so Soundwave stayed out of it. His calculations were still the same. The chance of it helping the cause outweighed the risk of using the dark energon. _And Megatron had said that it was a good idea, so who would he be to question that?_

Starscream though, he was of a different opinion. As usual. Once again, the relative peace of the bridge was disturbed by one screechy Seeker and his ramblings. Soundwave had learned to tune out a lot of the “debates” that happened whenever their Lord and the SIC were in close proximity. Behind his visor, the Drone rolled his optics. _There the Seeker went again. Why didn't he have anything resembling the popcorn the humans were so fond of?_

“…megalomaniac! Maybe we should actually try to defeat the _Autobots on Earth_ before you go raving about taking over the universe. I'm sick of list…” Starscream’s annoyed rant was cut off by a loud clang. An indignant screech followed immediately, telling Soundwave that the other flier was indeed still functional. _Wonderful._

This time, the proceedings were different though, enough so to make Soundwave turn away from his console to look at what was going on. There was a noted lack of screeching, nor was there any attempts to suck up. Instead, Starscream growled, and then there was the sound of an actual brawl. Megatron was laughing, as if he was having a very good time, even though Starscream was managing to put a few dents into the Decepticon leader's plating. In fact, there was something simmering in Megatron's field, something that, paired with his increasingly bright optics had heat coiling behind Soundwave's panel. _Megatron was getting turned on_.

Starscream got an involuntary flight to crash against the wall, and Megatron was on him immediately, big servo wrapping around the Seeker's neck, lifting him off the floor to press him against the wall. Starscream's wings quivered in a way that could be nothing but increasing fear, and his claws scrabbled against the plating of Megatron's lower arm. It did nothing to loosen the grip, in spite of pulling energon where he managed to reach through seams of plating. The Warlord leaned closer, baring his denta in a vicious grin.

“Do you remember your place now, you insolent glitch of a failure? If your ideas were so much better than mine, you would have handed me a conquered Earth when I came back, hadn't you?”

Starscream’s optics were dimming, his engine whining with the stunted ventilations hindering the combustion. He was still kicking and clawing at Megatron, which only seemed to spur the Warlord on, but Soundwave could see that the Seeker would fall into reboot at any second, and even if there never had been a serious attempt to deactivate the Seeker so far, if Megatron kept that grip...

He left his console, knowing that in spite of being an annoying, loud-mouth glitch, the second in command was still valuable to the cause. He stepped up next to the combatants, and Megatron's attention slipped from being pinned on Starscream's panicked struggles to stay online. The Warlord turned around and caught Soundwave's visor, a smirk spreading across his scarred intake.

_“Starscream: Valuable.”_ He displayed the glyphs on his visor.

Megatron’s grin turned into a sneer, followed by a grinding of his denta, but then he dropped the barely conscious seeker.

“I suppose you're right.”

Soundwave dipped his helm in acknowledgement, trying not to be overtaken by the strong waves of lust roiling through his Lord's field. _Megatron had never been this blatant in his displays of arousal before, even if he wasn't one to hide it either. And it was the first time Soundwave had noticed it in direct connection to roughing Starscream up._

“But who are you to question if I deem him disposable?” Megatron's voice was a dangerous purr.

Soundwave dipped his helm in deference.

_“Soundwave: live to serve.”_ He wrote on his visor.

Behind the screen, he glanced up at Megatron when a spike of arousal lanced through the Decepticon leader's field, and he caught the feral grin stretching his lip-plates.

“You're a very good subordinate, Soundwave. Very good.”


	3. Chapter 3

Soundwave brought the dented Seeker to the medbay, carefully setting him down on the table. Starscream was still a bit out of it, systems rebooting very slowly. A testament to how far Megatron had pushed it this time. _He was getting more violent._

Knock Out rolled his optics when he saw the Air Commander's mangled form. “This one is such a masochist. Oh, well, to each his own. I'm just tired of straightening him out over and over. Happens more and more these days.”

Soundwave just stared at the mech for long seconds. It wasn't like Knock Out was a mech who should be commenting someone else's preferences. Soundwave had walked in on him and Breakdown a couple of times, and while they had stopped their interfacing immediately, he still knew that Knock Out obviously was a valve mech, when he wasn't sucking spike, and from the Communications Officer's point of view, it had looked rather… _Rough._

_“It takes one to know one.”_ He wrote on his visor, feeling decidedly smug when Knock Out's field flared in alarm and the vain mech's face fell momentarily.

He couldn't resist playing a sound clip his surveillance sweep had caught a few weeks earlier.

_“Let go of me, you big brute!”_ Knock Out's voice sounded from his speakers. The Medic looked even more alarmed. _“You like this, you little slut, like to be bent over and fragged. Like the little fuck toy you are.”_ Breakdowns voice rumbled, followed by a wanton moan from the Racer.

Knock Out looked very much like a deer in the headlights, but Breakdown laughed from behind the curtain sectioning off the area for repairs of smaller components. “Busted, Doc.”

Knock Out's intake moved in a rather amusing manner without any words leaving his vocalizer, his field cloying with mortification. Soundwave had never told anyone, but he did enjoy dropping these little reminders of why he was still holding his spot in the chain of command. The effect it had on the mechs when he suddenly showed them that he did indeed know much more about what happened on the ship than the Decepticons wanted to pretend he did never failed to amuse him.

_“Proceed with repairs.”_ He wrote on his screen, before leaving the medbay.

The door slid shut behind him, and he walked back towards the bridge, aiming to get quite a few more hours of work in before he returned to his quarters. Vehicons greeted him with respectful nods when he met them in the corridors, and he greeted them back with a touch of his field, conveying his satisfaction with their work. He usually communicated like that, and it seemed to work very well, taking some of the wary edge off, leaving the Vehicons properly respectful and subordinated, while not fearful and suspicious, which would make for less efficiency.

The bridge was not empty when he stepped in. It shouldn’t be a surprise, really. Megatron usually spent a lot of his time on the bridge, when not on missions on Earth, or in space, but the Drone was still unaccustomed to having his Lord back. Megatron paced the room restlessly, but he didn't seem to be deep in thought, as was customary when he resorted to walking back and forth. No, the Warlord exuded pent up energy, razor sharp and searing. When Soundwave entered, he whipped around, optics slowly traveling the UAV's frame, from helm to pede, and back up. A shiver trickled down Soundwave's back-strut, settling a heaviness behind his panel. The corners of Megatron's intake quirked up in a smirk.

“Why, Soundwave. My good subordinate. Always willing to… _serve_ your Lord,” his optics flicked to his throne, and his smirk turned sly, “whenever I need to be served. Like now. Come here.” There was a command in the last words, and the Decepticon leader strode over to his throne, sinking into it.

Soundwave obeyed, coming to stand in front of Megatron.

“Kneel.”

It was something entirely new, and Soundwave would have protested if anyone else had ordered him to kneel like this. _He was done being a subservient slave, had been for a very long time._ But this was Lord Megatron, Glorious Leader of the Decepticons. _And he_ always, _without fail, carried out Megatron's orders_. He slowly, gracefully sank to his knees, lowering his visor to look at the Warlord's pedes.

“Very good, Soundwave. Why can't everyone be such good subordinates? You always were the best one.”

The Communications Officer preened quietly under the praise, letting his gratitude roll into his field to show Megatron how grateful he was for being allowed to serve his Lord. A digit hooked around the lower edge of his visor, tilting his helm back to turn his dark screen to the Warlord's face.

“Are you going to be a good subordinate? Serve me well?”

He dipped his chin in a small nod, what little the digit allowed the movement, and pushed his agreement into his field.

“Of course you will. You're so good, Soundwave. A good subordinate always serves his Master in any way his Master wants. If you didn't wear that screen, this would be so much easier, but it'll do for now,” Megatron crooned, his interface panel sliding to the side, spike pressurizing immediately, pre-transfluid already beading from the channel, “use your servos.”

Soundwave hesitated. Sure, he wanted to serve Lord Megatron this way — almost desperately so — but right there? On the bridge, where someone could walk in on them? Soundwave had always seen interfacing as something deeply private, he did not understand why some mechs enjoyed the thrills of doing things where the risk of getting caught was high. And the way Megatron proposed this was very unusual and uncharacteristic. His Lord knew that Soundwave was a private mech, and had always respected that by quiet invitations to his quarters, or his office.

“Well? Are you not as good a subordinate as I thought you were? Are you going to prove as difficult as _Starscream?_ ” There was a hard edge to Megatron's voice, a displeased warning that had never been turned against Soundwave before.

Of course he didn't want to fall out of Glorious Leader's favor, so Soundwave hurriedly did as he was told. Slim digits wrapped around the shaft, spreading out to touch as much of it as possible, his thumbs smearing the slick pre-transfluid over the head. Then he started to slowly stroke the length, alternating the pressure by continuously moving his fingers. Megatron tipped his helm back, a gasp leaving his intake. Soundwave watched as his digits slipped over the ridges, carefully modulating his grip, focusing intently on how to bring the most pleasure possible. He still kept a sensor suite focused on discovering mechs approaching the bridge. Not that he could do much more than lock the door. Lord Megatron would probably be displeased if he stopped this just because someone walked in. He didn't seem at all concerned with modesty at the moment.

Soundwave felt ambivalent about the idea. Why did Megatron want it like this? That he wanted to get rid of the charge wasn't that strange, by why here? Why like this? They could've gone to his quarters instead, could've made this properly, in a berth. _But Megatron probably had his reasons, he usually had, and who was he to question his Leader's decisions? Maybe it was a test? To see if he was truly loyal, to see if Soundwave would serve his Lord without questioning_. Of course he would. That Megatron allowed him to serve in this most personal manner was an honor, a sign that Megatron did see him as something more than just a part of the surveillance and communications systems. _He could lock the door from here anyway, so why was he even wasting time thinking about this? Why didn't he just relish this rare opportunity to be physically close to Glorious Leader?_

Finally seeing it for the privilege it was, he pushed all other thoughts from his processor, allowing his wireless connection to the systems of the ship take a side process, set to ping if something troubling came up, and then he focused fully on bringing Megatron pleasure.

The silver mech's talons dug into the arm rests of the throne, leaving gouges in the metal, and his thighs trembled as Soundwave skillfully brought him closer, stroking the length, just to back off, toying with the head with fingers slick with pre-transfluid, then he went back to stroking with a firm grasp. It was a slow build, ramping the Decepticon leader’s charge very high, charge crackling over his plating.

Megatron tried to buck into Soundwave’s servos, chasing release, but the UAV followed the movement, holding the overload from his Lord, not ready to let this honor be over with just yet. Megatron growled in frustration, and reached down to grab around Soundwave's servos, an almost denting grip to press them more firmly around his spike, and then he started to jerk himself off with Soundwave's hands. His other servo landed heavily on the dark helm, dragging him closer, and Soundwave followed, pliant under his Master's touch. _If he did this satisfyingly, he may be allowed to serve his Lord again_.

The head of the silver spike rubbed against his visor, smeared the glistening fluids against the screen, and then Megatron roared, in that way he did back in the arena, when he defeated another gladiator. Megatron had never defeated Soundwave, but he didn't have to. Soundwave was happy to follow his Lord, to serve in any way possible, and he thrived on making his Master happy. _Even if the stickiness on his visor was annoying._ Ropes of sticky transfluid landed across his screen as the Warlord came, but Soundwave dutifully kept milking that spike until Megatron's hips twitched, the component very sensitive after his release.

The UAV sat back, aft on the heels of his pedes, visor tilted down to show his subservience. Once again, Megatron tilted his helm up, inspecting the dark screen, crisscrossed with streaks of his cum.

“So pretty. You never fail me Soundwave. Now, continue your work.”

He recognized the dismissal and stood, heading for the nearest washracks, steps hurried. Even if this was a great honor - to be allowed to serve his Lord like this - he didn't much care for others bearing witness to what he had done. It was between him and Lord Megatron. Keeping his sensors out for approaching mechs, he walked briskly down the corridor, spark spinning quickly with his elation. _Lord Megatron found him pretty, was satisfied with his performance._


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kind of iffy consent, because Soundwave is clearly not comfortable about stuff, but he convinces himself that it's ok, and it's just not a healthy safe, sane, consensual situation.

The second time also seemed to be triggered by Starscream. There was the brawl on the bridge, a thing that seemed increasingly common these days. Not that Soundwave would complain, because while the increased fighting was annoying, and sometimes worrying for the Decepticon cause, it also seemed to make Starscream less inclined to grace Lord Megatron's berth, and it was so much easier to think back to that time on the bridge and derive pleasure from it when Soundwave was fairly certain that there wasn't a Seeker in Lord Megatron's quarters, enjoying his Master's attentions while Soundwave had to take care of his own needs.

Fighting Starscream seemed to rile Megatron up, the arousal lashing even more wildly through his field this time when Soundwave dragged the unconscious Seeker off to the medbay. It sent a heat to the Drone's array, because the last time that happened, it had lead to him catching his charismatic leader's attentions. So he was intensely aware of the burning optics riveted to him as he carried the Seeker through the door to the bridge, the way Megatron's field seemed to smother the entire room with his heavy arousal, and it made his entire protoform crawl in a very pleasant way, had him hurrying his steps even more.

Starscream was left in the medbay, and Soundwave hurried back to the bridge. _For professional purposes, of course. He had a job to do. Lord Megatron appreciated his dutifulness_. When he got back, he found the bridge empty, Glorious Leader nowhere to be seen. The Communications Officer pondered using his surveillance systems to sweep the ship to see where Megatron went, but he discarded the idea, chided himself for it. _Lord Megatron needed a servant, not a stalker_. Using the systems for such personal purposes would be misuse of the equipment that should be dedicated to furthering the progress of the Decepticon cause.

Admittedly a bit disappointed, he settled back at his console, continuing his tasks, one process on the goings on in the medbay. Starscream was back online, Knock Out straightening dented plates, and reattaching wiring that had borne the brunt of the violence inflicted before Soundwave intervened.

“I think he's getting aroused by me fighting back. It's as if every hit I manage to land is pleasurable to him. And I'm absolutely certain that he enjoys the rush of overpowering me.” Starscream admitted to Knock Out.

“A lot of mechs enjoy that. And some like to be overpowered.” Knock Out said noncommittally.

“I still don't get how you mange to do it to Breakdown.”

Soundwave did a mental double take. _So Starscream didn't know about the true nature of the relationship between the two medics? It was ridiculous, really, the way Knock Out was afraid of anyone finding out that he was a bottom, even Starscream who could be considered his friend. Why did they think serving was worse than just taking what they want? Breakdown sure was an indulgent partner to let everyone believe that Knock Out bossed him around in every way when the truth was the opposite. Soundwave had glared down more than one newly arrived Vehicon who thought that Breakdown was weak because of that._

“I’m just that good.” Knockout sounded rather snippy.

“And some mechs just enjoy being held down and taken so much, they don't really put an effort into fighting back. Isn't that right, Knock Out?” Breakdown cut in as he started polishing a plate on Starscream's thigh.

The way the CMO flushed was obvious even through the surveillance system, and he looked startled before he glared at Breakdown. Starscream missed the byplay though, and was still oblivious to the truth that laid behind those words.

“Whatever it is, I'm not very keen on looking like I'm straight from a battle with the Prime instead of coming from our dear leader's berth.” Starscream ground out.

Soundwave tuned the conversation out after that. _Starscream seemed to be losing interest in Megatron. Who would Megatron turn his interest to now? He had berthed Knock Out on several occasions, and his affinity for being taken by force would probably suit the Warlord. The racer was also very pretty, even for a grounder. But Knock Out seemed pretty content with interfacing with Breakdown. In fact, they almost seemed exclusive these days…_

He didn't dare hoping for Megatron to take interest in him again. It had never happened before that Megatron had requested Soundwave’s company more than once every 10.000 years. Mostly less than that. _But maybe this time_ …

He pushed those thoughts away, focusing on his job again. It wouldn't do to get distracted. His Lord was most pleased with him when he served a purpose, when he served the cause. _Slipping now – for silly fantasies no less – would be the most certain way to stay out of Megatron's quarters_. He needed to stay away from speculative thoughts about the love lives on the ship, things he normally would consider utterly unimportant. In fact, this fixation was rather uncharacteristic for ever efficient Soundwave. He needed to get back on his normal track.

Immersing himself in the feeds of data, analyzing everything twice for good measure, as penance for his wayward thoughts, Soundwave managed to do all his work, and do an extra inventory of the engine control systems, to make sure everything was working at optimal capacity. The Drone managed to stay focused on his tasks. Until…

::Soundwave. Report to my quarters.:: Megatron's voice came over their private comm link.

Sending back an affirmative data burst, he stood from his chair, spark spinning quickly with nerves. It was rather late. _What could Lord Megatron want at this hour? In his private quarters._ He still didn't dare keeping his hopes up, but there was this fluttering in his tank that wouldn't leave him alone. His movements felt odd and jerky as he tried to walk at his usual, purposeful pace, with his trademark confidence. _Surely someone would notice if he met anyone from the crew?_

But he met several Vehicons, and none of them seemed to notice, or if they did, they didn't show it. All of them greeted him respectfully, keeping up whatever they were doing at the moment.

The door to Megatron's quarters suddenly looked imposing in a way it never had before, and Soundwave dawdled outside. _Should he ping an alert for his presence, or just send the request for opening it?_ He usually just opened it, if Megatron wanted to keep him out, he locked the door, and his Lord probably wanted to see Soundwave's usual composure. He sent the request and the door slid open immediately.

It was rather dark inside, but he stepped in, shifting his visor to night vision. Coming to a stop in the middle of the room, he started to look around. The door slid shut, ands suddenly there was a large servo around the back of his neck. Soundwave startled, not used to be caught off guard.

“Stay still.” Lord Megatron growled in his audial, and Soundwave shivered.

 _Of course Megatron would be able to outsmart him, if anyone could, it would be Lord Megatron_. It sent a thrill down his back-strut, and he stood there, frozen, as the Warlord circled him, optics slithering up and down his frame in a way that was almost tangible. The UAV felt wetness begin to tingle in his array, a throbbing pulse in time with the revolutions of his spark.

“Now Soundwave, are you getting sloppy? You usually are aware of everything around you, yet here you are, not even noticing your Master when you enter the room.”

_He felt so safe entering Megatron's quarters, it didn’t occur to him that he might need to check the surroundings. His Lord was displeased! He couldn't even watch his own vicinity, how could Lord Megatron ever trust him to keep the ship safe?_

He allowed his field to convey how embarrassed he was by his failure, how sorry he was that he let his Master down.

“I’ll forgive you, Soundwave. This time. If you serve me well. Will you serve me, Soundwave?”

Soundwave nodded eagerly.

“Of course you will. Kneel.”

It was an order, and Soundwave obeyed that order quickly, eager to please his Lord, who so gracefully forgave him for being sloppy.

“Good. Now I want a _show._ A good show,” Megatron said, walking around his desk to take a seat, leaving Soundwave in the middle of the floor, “of how you satisfy yourself.”

Soundwave’s visor snapped up in disbelief. _Lord Megatron had hardly showed much interest in his pleasure before, had been rather indifferent about it the few times they had interfaced. Why would he suddenly want to see such a blatant display?_ Something about it gave the Drone pause.

Glorious Leader was staring expectantly at him, bright optics riveted to the slender mech, and Soundwave was slowly realizing that Megatron did indeed expect him to do something. _But what was he supposed to do? What, exactly, was it Megatron wanted to see?_ Embarrassment was creeping in on the third in command as his efforts to figure it out made his processor supply him with increasingly lewd pictures of his own servos stroking his frame, digits slipping through his folds.

“Well, Soundwave? I'm still waiting. Are you not going to be a good subordinate? Are you going to be difficult and defy your Master?” There was a dangerous edge in Lord Megatron’s voice, an edge usually reserved for other Decepticons. Not that Soundwave believed that Megatron would turn his volatile temper on his Communications Officer, but he didn't want to displease Megatron either.

He did a questioning motion with his servos, and flashed a question mark in his screen, just to get Megatron to clarify, because he still couldn't believe that he had been called to his Lord's quarters to put on a show. _Like a common pleasure drone_.

“How hard can it be, _really,_ Soundwave?” Megatron’s voice was biting, and the UAV cringed internally, “I always thought you were brighter than that. I want a show of you pleasuring yourself. With your servos, with those tentacle things of yours, even a fake spike, should you have one in your subspace. I don't care. _Masturbate_ for me. Is that instructions enough?”

More than clear enough, but no less embarrassing for it. But Soundwave was stricken by the scathing comments, every word of his failures like the lash of a whip, and he didn't want to displease his Lord, so with great hesitance, he slid his spindly servos up his thighs, caressing his hips, up his slim waist, and over his chest-plates. The empath could practically feel those optics burning against his dark plating, even though he couldn't bring himself to look at Megatron. His visor was a blessing, because his Lord won't know, won't notice that he offlined his optics to be able to pretend that he was alone, that nobody was witnessing the highly private act.

 _It was still impossible_.

Soundwave never did it in that position, always went to his berth for the few times he self-serviced. He knew that some mechs used the washracks, but he was not one of them. The Communications Officer still moved hesitantly, stroking his plating in what he hoped was an erotic way. _He never took interest in the shows some dancers put on back on Cybertron, he didn't know what it was supposed to look like_. Fingers skittering down his front again, he reached through a seam, slipped the pad of his digit against a cluster of wires that tingled with the touch.

“Move it along, Soundwave. I don't have all night. Open your panel.” Megatron rumbled, and to Soundwave's sensitive audials, to his systems honed to notice every little shift in Megatron's mood, it was obvious that his leader was getting bored. _Displeased._

It took two commands to open his panel, but then it slid away, and Soundwave was hyper aware of how the cool air caressed his sensitive valve-lips, how he was exposed for his Lord to scrutinize. It was kind of hard to convince his servo to reach between his legs, but eventually, a cool finger slipped through his rather dry slit. He teased his node, the fastest way to get his charge to start rising, and it did feel good, but it was so hard to concentrate on that when his Lord's field was flaring out, pressing against his with arousal that spiked as soon as Soundwave opened his panel. There was a hunger in that field, the type he usually felt when Megatron was succeeding with one of his plans to gain power, and the UAV couldn't quite put the two together in a comprehensible way.

The first drop of lubricant slipped out to coat his valve-lips, slowly going plumper as he continued to caress his node, and the added slick made the touch more pleasurable.

“That's right, Soundwave. Be a good little Decepticon, and serve your Master.” Megatron praised him.

The Communications Officer preened, that praise sending a warm trickle down his back-strut, pooling in his array, and it made his charge rise. Behind his visor, his intake fell open in a silent gasp. He started to rub his node with more fervor, and he knew that his embarrassment leaked out into his field, but he just couldn't control it. _He still didn't feel comfortable knowing that Megatron was keenly following every movement, noticing how his hips twitched when he pressed harder against his node_. Servo slowly being coated with his lubricant, he stopped himself from slipping his digits inside, knowing what kind of sounds that would make, intensely aware of how mortifyingly wet he was at that point.

A quiet sound of a minor transformation had him onlining his optics again, just to catch sight of Megatron reaching beneath the table, arm starting to move rhythmically.

He knew what his Lord was doing, even if Megatron's servo was obscured by the desk, and it was as mortifying as it was flattering. _He was serving his Lord, his Master must be pleased with him if what he was doing had that effect on Glorious Leader._ It still felt uncomfortably obscene, even if it sent a thrill down his back-strut to know that he pleased his Lord.

“Lean back, Soundwave.”

Hesitantly he obeyed, arching his back-strut to push his chest out, putting one servo on the floor behind him to take some of his weight, still fiddling with his node. It felt kind of awkward, and his thighs started trembling, hydraulic pressure fluctuating from trying to keep the position.

“Further, Soundwave! All the way, until your shoulders hit the floor.” Megatron commanded, sounding very displeased with the current effort.

Another thing he didn't feel comfortable with, just as his arousal was budding with the thrill of pleasing Glorious Leader. The position would arch his back uncomfortably, but what was the most embarrassing was the way his valve would be exposed for Megatron to see. But he didn't want to displease his Lord either, didn't like the lash in Megatron's field that was a testament of his failure.

So Soundwave obeyed, slowly tilting back, his frame trembling with the movement he was so unfamiliar with. The Drone's shoulders and upper back hit the floor with a thud, and it strained his hip joints, but he ignored that discomfort easily, distracted by his knees sliding further apart. _Spreading him wide, pulling his valve open_. He could feel the cool air in his soaked channel. Megatron's engine revved.

“Go on, toy with yourself!”

His Leader was impatient as always, but Soundwave was mortified with the way he was displayed and spread open, hesitant to reach between his legs. A spindly digit still slid over his node, making his frame jerk without his permission, slipping down his open slit, turning back to trace one of his plump valve-lips. It felt good, and behind his mask, the third in command's intake opened in a silent gasp. Uncomfortable as it was, the position made it easier to pretend that he was alone, because he couldn't see Megatron's optics riveted to his frame. _Even though there was no denying the Warlord’s field, heavy and tacky against his_.

Soundwave continued the delicate touches, slowly getting his charge to rise again, exterior node sending a jolt of sensation through him every time he pressed a digit against it.

“Fuck yourself with your digits.” Megatron said, voice gravely with arousal.

It made Soundwave's charge drop again, making it all too clear that he was on display, like some sort of performer, and just the thought of doing it so blatantly was enough to make him consider trying to get Megatron's mercy. _Why was his Lord demanding this of him? He was a good subordinate, always served the cause with all his might, how would this make or break his case?_

“Come on, Soundwave, you've been doing so well so far,” Megatron purred, approval curling through his field, thick enough to make Soundwave buck with pleasure, “you wouldn't want to disappoint me now, would you?” Displeasure lashed through Megatron's field, and it was so sudden after that caress of approval, Soundwave jerked as if he'd been hit.

 _Oh, how he wanted that approval, wanted Megatron to acknowledge that he was a good Decepticon_. Slowly, the Drone slipped a slim finger into his open valve, not meeting any resistance until he was halfway inside, where the walls were still sticking together. He slid inside as far as he could before withdrawing, lubricant trailing his digit, drooling out to drip down his aft.

“Swirl your digit just inside that open rim.”

It was mortifying. The comment really hit home exactly what Megatron was looking at, and he couldn't stop the embarrassment from coursing through his field. Megatron groaned, his field flaring with a spike of arousal. Soundwave took the chance to do as he was asked, half hoping that Megatron was too preoccupied to actually see the way he circled the inside of his valve. The movement made him tease the line of nodes placed there, and his valve clenched, making the lubricant well out of him. Megatron grunted.

“Now fuck yourself. Really _fuck_ yourself. Three digits.”

It was such an abrupt step up from just one digit, but he was already halfway open, so he pushed inside slowly to allow his walls to adjust, before starting to pump his digits. It wouldn't be enough to bring him over, but Soundwave didn't dare to use his other servo to stimulate his node. _His Lord had not told him to do so, and this was not for his pleasure, it was for Megatron's._

“Another digit.”

Four digits was a lot. Sure, Megatron's spike was probably thicker if measuring the circumference, but the difference in shape made four digits inconvenient. Soundwave never used that many when self-servicing. _But this was not for his pleasure._ The Communications Officer tried to collect his digits as closely as possible, to make them all fit in his rather unused valve, and then he plunged them inside. There was stretch, not necessarily comfortable, but it made him hit nodes inside that did make it feel good, so the input was rather confusing, because there was indeed some level of pleasure too.

He started pumping his servo, stopping when his knuckles pressed the rim of his valve, not keen on damaging himself. _He'd need to practice beforehand to take more of his servo._ Megatron didn't complain though, so it seemed to be enough to please his Lord. He pumped, quicker and quicker, charge rising, but so slowly, it would not bring him over in a reasonable amount of time. _But maybe Megatron would want to watch him do this for hours, until he finally came, frame kinked and sore?_ That process was interrupted by the roar of the Warlord, announcing the other's release.

Soundwave didn't stop. He kept pumping his digits into his valve, waiting for the order to stop, waiting for Megatron to tell him that he had done good enough, that he was a good subordinate. The lubricant welled out every time he pulled his digits out, and his valve adjusted to the penetration, walls going more and more supple every time his digits slipped inside. _What was Megatron doing? Why wasn't his Lord telling him to stop?_ Soundwave couldn't see Megatron from his position, and the only way he would be able to look at him would be breaking his pose. _What if Megatron was waiting for him to open himself up even more, to get his entire servo in there?_ The thought did not appeal to him at all.

And yet he continued to work his valve, scissoring his digits to prepare himself if that was the case. He heard movement from Megatron's desk, but it didn't matter what his Lord did; as long as he wasn't ordered to stop, or to do something different, Soundwave would continue.

Heavy pedesteps approached him, and he pressed his chin against his chest, tilting his helm to catch a glimpse of his Lord. Megatron stopped by Soundwave's knees, staring down at where the UAV was still fucking himself with his digits. His Lord's optics were bright, even if he already had overloaded, and his field was rolling with lazy waves of satisfaction, and of something Soundwave couldn't name exactly. _Something hungry, something viciously gloating in a decidedly unpleasant way_.

“You are doing well, my subordinate. Obedient. I like that. You should always comply with what I say, even if it sometimes makes you uncomfortable. I just need to make sure that you are still ready to do anything for your Master. I need to be certain that you really can be used as a good example for the other Decepticons.”

_It made sense. War and fighting for the cause sometimes forced mechs to do things they found uncomfortable, things they didn't want to do. Of course Megatron had to know that his most loyal follower would be able to go outside his comfort zone for his Lord. How had he failed to understand that? He was so lucky that Megatron had chosen something this easy and harmless to test him._

Soundwave's movements got quicker, now eagerly trying to please Glorious Leader, to show how very willing he was to comply with Megatron's wishes, how fervent to obey his Lord.

“I think you deserve a reward for fulfilling your task, for following my orders. Would you like me to let you overload?”

Soundwave nodded eagerly. _His Lord was pleased with him_. His spark pulsed with pride and joy, and he was just about to reach between his legs to play with his node when Megatron crouched, reaching for Soundwave’s array.

“Pull out.”

Of course he did, digits dripping of his lubricant. Soundwave's valve was immediately filled with two of Megatron's thick digits, slowly pumping in and out of the Communications Officer. It felt much better than Soundwave's four digits, even if he was quite stretched by now, but it would never be enough to bring him over. His wet servo lingered, and hesitantly, he flicked his node with one of his digits, testing to see if Megatron would be displeased that he wasn't satisfied with what his Lord so graciously offered. The Warlord just stared though, entranced with his digits slipping in and out of Soundwave's slick valve, so the Drone continued to touch himself, charge rising much quicker when he was properly stimulated.

“That's right, my good subordinate, take the pleasure your Master grants you while you are allowed.”

Somehow the comment was both arousing and embarrassing. It still made him want to preen to be called _good._ Megatron was pumping his digits faster now, and Soundwave matched the increase of the pace with his own movements.

“You look so good like this, spread out for me to see and touch however I see fit, just because I said so, just because I want it. As it should be. You're mine to command, and use.”

His spark soared. _Megatron called him “his”._ Megatron praised him, and complimented him! It ramped up his charge, and he unconsciously tried to grind against his Lord's servo, tried to fuck himself on those digits. It was impossible in the position he was in, of course, but that didn't really matter. All that mattered was that Megatron was satisfied with him, that he had managed to serve Glorious Leader to his very high standards.

Suddenly all his reluctance, all the embarrassment he had felt for putting on a show like this bled away, as his processor came to the only logical conclusion; _it had been worth it_. The realization unlatched the last of his mental locks, and he allowed himself to truly give himself to the pleasure his Lord was granting him, uninhibited and unashamed. _He was serving his Lord, and that was something beautiful, something perfect, whatever shape his service took._

The overload hit hard and suddenly, making his back-strut arch even more than the position forced him to, and he was knocked into a reboot, everything going black.

When he onlined, several minutes later, Megatron was nowhere to be seen, and Soundwave was still laying on the floor, though stretched out on the side. He couldn't tell if that had happened while he overloaded, or if Megatron had rearranged him while he was offline.

Sitting up, he took stock of his frame. It didn't look that bad. The position had made the lubricant dribble out and pool underneath him, but his thighs were clean. His panel was still open, and the UAV reached into his subspace to get a cloth.

On shaky legs, his hydraulic pressure still fluctuating slightly, he stood, gingerly wiping his still hyper sensitive array. The slick lubricant took some effort to get from his plating, but eventually Soundwave was presentable enough to feel confident, should he meet anyone along the way to his quarters. It was one thing to get the privilege to show his Lord his most private parts and actions, it was something else entirely to blatantly display what he had been doing to the rest of the crew.

Soundwave closed his panel and left Megatron’s quarters, slowly heading back to his own, spark spinning with excitement. _Lord Megatron had declared him his Lord's. Lord Megatron was satisfied with his compliance. If he was lucky, his Lord would want to test him again. He would not fail. He would comply, and he would trust Megatron. If he had to go outside his comfort zone, he would, because Megatron rewarded a good subordinate. And he was going to be the best._


	5. Chapter 5

Lazerbeak returned from a surveillance mission on Earth, and his symbiont landed on Soundwave's shoulder, nudging his helm fin affectionately. Their bond was already wide open, singing with the welcoming warmth of their reunion, but physical touch, and the meshing of their EM fields together formed their personal embrace.

::Welcome home.:: Soundwave commed her. He rarely used his comms, opting for sending data bursts when he needed to relay orders or information to other mechs as much as possible, but Lazerbeak was not other mechs. _She was family, the only family he had left._

::It's good to be back.:: She commed back.

They lapsed into silence, because what they needed to say was easily read through their bond and EM fields, and her report would be relayed in compiled files when she docked with him later. If she'd had any urgent information, she would've told him so, and hurried along, but this time, they were free to revel in each other's company.

::You closed the bond.:: She finally stated.

Soundwave barely managed to stifle a flare of embarrassment that his perceptive symbiont would've picked up on, when he remembered _why_ he had closed the bond. He knew that she was just curious, because it was in her nature, and because he rarely blocked her completely, but it still made him a little nervous that she had noticed it. _Ridiculous, really. It wasn't something to be ashamed of. He had served his Lord. And it wasn't like Lazerbeak believed that he was a virgin_. She hadn't asked him about it, she stated it, and he knew that it was her tactful way of leaving him room to not answer.

::Yes. Private matters.::

She dipped her helm in acknowledgement, and over the bond he felt her acceptance. He was allowed to keep his personal life private, no matter how close they were, as was she. It still made him a little uneasy, because the things he had done wasn't something he wanted her to know.

Soundwave headed for the nearest energon dispenser to pick up their rations before heading back to his quarters. Lazerbeak needed to refuel, and then she would need to dock with him to transfer her reports, as well as to recharge. She could recharge by herself, but doing it docked was more efficient. _And he had missed the presence of her._

His symbiont flew ahead the last stretch down the hallway, eager to finally be back in their quarters, and the joy of being home that she broadcasted over their bond made Soundwave's spark swell with happiness. The door opened for her, and when he stepped through it, she had landed on the berth, waiting for him to bring the energon grits he had for her. He set the cube in front of her, and she reached her beak into it to pick up a mouthful, impatiently enough to spill some of it on the covers. He rebuked her lightly, with an undertone of fond amusement lacing through his field, and she answered with an apology that wasn't completely lacking playful smugness. _It was nice to have her back, so he didn't have to spend the evenings alone._

Except he couldn't be certain that he would be alone anymore. Lord Megatron had already broken the normal pattern of long time passing between the times they interfaced — _or whatever it was that they were doing_ — and he could decide to break it again. The thought made the Drone's spark hiccup with nerves, because while Lazerbeak was aware of Soundwave sometimes engaging in sexual activities, he wasn't ready to try to explain the type of acts he was currently performing to serve his Lord. He was still kind of embarrassed about it himself, even though he knew it was just a test of his loyalty, his ability to push his personal feelings to the side to serve Megatron. It felt strange to keep things hidden from her, to keep his bond and field in check where they normally were completely open and honest with each other, and it brought about a sense of guilt, as if he was cheating on her somehow, even though they didn't have that sort of relationship. _It was ridiculous._ Soundwave belonged fully to Lord Megatron, and the cause, and she wouldn't disapprove, so he really should tell her. _All in due time. He would tell her. Just not right now_.


	6. Chapter 6

“I want you to work from my quarters today, can you do that for me?” Megatron purred in his audial, a servo sliding down Soundwave's back-strut.

His vents hitched at the unexpected caress, a tingle left in the wake of his Lord's touch. He nodded eagerly. _He really wanted to please his Lord, and he could easily work through Lord Megatron's console, and by his own wireless connection._

“Good mech. Come.” Megatron ordered.

The Drone stood, following his Lord; a step behind and to the side, keeping pace with the silver mech. His spark spun quicker, because this request was something new, and what kind of work was Megatron thinking about? Soundwave did have tasks he needed to do. _But then again, serving his Lord was the most important thing_.

“Sit on my desk, and spread your legs.”

Soundwave's valve twitched in a way that was decidedly unprofessional, but he eagerly obeyed, aft on the desk top, pedes braced against a chair and a shelf with data pads. Megatron kneeled in front of him, and that put his helm at the same height as Soundwave's array.

“Open your panel.”

It was embarrassing, because it would leave him bare for Megatron's close scrutiny, an intimacy Soundwave was not used to, nor comfortable with. _But his Lord had made a request, and who would he be to refuse Glorious Leader? He wasn't going to turn into Starscream, and be yet another failure in the long line of subordinate's not reaching Lord Megatron's standards._

It took four tries to get the panel to open, his shyness making him reflexively stop the protocols as soon as he activated them, and the UAV could teek Megatron's growing impatience. He took a deep vent to steel himself, and finally he managed to get the plate to slide away, revealing his most private parts to hungry, purple optics. Behind his visor, Soundwave offlined his own optics in an attempt to hide. _As futile as sticking his helm into the sand_.

“You shouldn't be so hesitant about showing me what is rightfully mine.” Megatron rumbled.

Soundwave's spark skipped a revolution. _Lord Megatron called him his._

“Now, I need to make sure that this _is_ indeed mine, and mine alone. Not even you should touch this without my permission.”

The Drone heard how his Lord rummaged through a drawer, and he onlined his optics again, curious about what was to come. Megatron toyed with something that looked like a thick disk, and a hook of metal rods.

“Do you know what this is, Soundwave?”

He shook his helm.

“This,” Megatron showed him the disk, “is a spike seal. I'm going to mount this on you to make sure that nobody else, including you, touch your spike without my permission.”

The shudder that went down Soundwave's back-strut had nothing to do with pleasure or arousal, only discomfort. He was not very fond of handing over the control of his frame to anyone like that, even if his spike rarely saw any use. It was the implication of not being a free mech, which was what the cause had really been about when they started it all those millions of years ago. _But he really should be a good subordinate and serve his Lord_. He nodded his agreement, even though it left kind of a bitter taste in the back of his intake.

The smirk that twisted Megatron's toothy intake was decidedly unpleasant, something calculating and ugly glinting in his optics. The Warlord reached forward, coaxing the petals of Soundwave's spike cover open. The disk was pushed through the rim, an uncomfortable procedure due to the diameter being large enough to keep it in place once seated inside the rim. The UAV felt a magnet engage as it locked into place, Megatron's optics bright as he stared at the now smooth surface where the head of Soundwave’s spike should be visible. The Communications Officer stared down at his array, warring with himself over the decision to agree to this. _He wanted it taken out again._

_“Remove. Please.”_ He wrote in his visor, but it took what seemed like an eternity before Megatron glanced up at him and saw the request.

The Decepticon leader's faceplates darkened with an anger Soundwave had never had directed at him, and he cringed.

“Really, Soundwave? Are you going to prove as difficult and useless as Starscream?”

_Oh, how he wanted that thing to be removed, the disk pressing uncomfortably against both his spike and it's sheath_. But the only answer to Megatron's question if he was to get it removed would be that he was going to be difficult and useless, a disloyal subordinate, and he cringed even more at the thought of that.

He shook his helm, unable to bring himself to ask for something that would bring him out of Megatron's favor. _Something that surely would make Megatron stop paying this much attention to him._

“I didn't think so.” Megatron smirked, smug with satisfaction, holding up the next device.

It looked like a hook, consisting of several metal rods, and it had Soundwave on edge, at least until Megatron twisted it open to form a hollow orb. Another twist opened it at one side, the rods twisting out into a flare. It vaguely had the shape of a cyber-tulip, widely cupped, the rim flared, the rods like very slim petals.

“This is a valve cage. I'll open it inside you, and it will hinder any attempts at interfacing or masturbation, except when I unlock it to put something into you, or remove it for whatever purpose I need you for.”

The hindrance for self service wasn't much of a threat per se, Soundwave didn't play with himself very often. What really made this unpalatable was the loss of control of this very intimate part of his frame. _But on the other servo, why would he need that control? He was Lord Megatron’s servant, and if his Lord wanted him to be exclusively his, then he should do nothing but comply and serve his Lord. Wasn't it an honor that Megatron wanted him devoted to his Lord? Shouldn't he be flattered?_

Megatron folded the thing and slipped it into Soundwave's valve. It felt strange when it opened inside him, shifting around until it settled. It held him open in a way that felt rather obscene, the air touching his insides, and Megatron stuck his finger through where it held the rim to Soundwave's valve open without even touching Soundwave. The rods forming the cage pressed against his valve walls, but they were so slim, they didn't hit many nodes, just left him feeling frustratingly stretched, yet still empty.

“I'm the only one who can open it like this, the only one who can remove it. When I'm not engaging you, the opening will be closed and nothing, _nobody,_ can enter you.” Megatron said, crouching down to stare into Soundwave's gaping valve.

The third in command couldn't help but squirm in discomfort, feeling vulnerable and exposed in a way he never had felt before. His Lord swirled his digit in there, just lightly grazing his inner walls, and it was utterly embarrassing, the way the action really showed him how open he was.

“I really love it when your field flares like this. It's so arousing to know that you're mortified, and yet you still allow me to do this. Like a good subordinate should.”

Soundwave couldn't help himself, his field flared even more when his Lord acknowledged that he was embarrassed. _But he also received praise, and that was the most important part._

“Now go stand on all fours on my berth, aft in this direction. There's data cables there, so you can plug into the mainframe and get your work done.”

Soundwave dipped his helm in acknowledgement, and then he slowly went to the berth. It felt strange to walk with the thing inside him. His peripheral sensors told him that Megatron was staring after him as he slowly bent forward, crawling up on top of the berth. There was indeed data cables there, and he plugged them into the sockets on his lower arms, resting on his elbows and knees as he connected to the systems of the ship.

It was hard to focus on the task when he was so intensely aware of how his valve was opened and exposed, but he did his best, even though Megatron was still staring at him, not even pretending to be working. The Drone heard the click of a lock disengaging, and the low sound of plating shifting.

“This is awfully distracting. I think I need to relieve some tension before I will be able to get anything done.” Megatron's voice was rough with charge.

The Decepticon leader came to stand behind Soundwave, and the Communications Officer lost focus on his work, wondering what his Lord was going to do. He heard the slick slide of a servo along the length of Glorious Leader’s cock just as well as he registered it with his peripherals, the Warlord's field hungry and aroused, cloying with the satisfied want to overpower and dominate in a way that gave Soundwave pause. _What was his Lord planning?_ The slick slide continued, Megatron apparently aroused by what he saw. That didn't make it less uncomfortable to be the apparent object of lust. Soundwave wasn't used to be in such an exposed position.

Then the blunt head of Megatron's spike came to rest against the gaping opening of Soundwave's valve, and the UAV felt the hot spurts of transfluid coating his inner walls, pooling inside the cave that the cage turned his valve into, and it was so incredibly humiliating, so degrading to be used as a receptacle for his Lord's cum, he wanted to retch.

He didn't though, pushed the disgust down, because what kind of bad a subordinate wouldn’t he have to be to show his Lord that he was repulsed by what he was doing? Behind him, Megatron chuckled as he pulled back, the last spurt landing on Soundwave's aft. He patted his subordinate's hip in a way that felt incredibly condescending, before wiping his sticky servo on Soundwave’s plating.

“This is such a lovely look on you, Soundwave. How could I've ever missed noticing how pretty you can be for me?”

In spite of everything, Soundwave preened. Megatron chuckled, teeking the pride and joy that flashed in the Communications Officer's field. The Warlord went to settle at his desk, leaving Soundwave where he was, the cum slowly drooling out of his open valve. It felt mortifying, downright disgusting to feel every glob of it slowly oozing out, sliding over his node, some of it dripping down to soak into the padding of the berth, some trailing along his legs, running in under his plating to cling to his protoform. But it made his Lord happy, so Soundwave pushed those feelings down. _What was a little discomfort to please his Lord?_


	7. Chapter 7

Lord Megatron didn't stop at the valve cage, and the spike seal. No, he added a disc over Soundwave's exterior node too, effectively leaving his subordinate without any chance at touching himself, or to have someone else pleasure him. At first, he resented it, but as the days wore on, Soundwave started to find something mildly arousing about it. _That way the cage inside him pressed against the walls of his valve, just lightly teasing, enough to arouse, but not nearly enough to bring him even close._ And even more prominently arousing was the knowledge that nobody knew, but behind his plating, he fully belonged to his Lord. To know that he was walking in public, wearing sex toys was starting to turn him on.

Megatron would look at him and smirk knowingly when he squirmed, trying to shift the cage around to get friction, or to move it from a node that was making it impossible to concentrate. Sometimes, it really pressed against something that felt obscenely good, and he would start to lubricate so profusely, he had to sneak off to the maintenance room to wipe the inside of his panel.

“You’re being such a good subordinate,” Megatron purred in his audial one day when they were alone on the bridge again, servos stroking down the Empath’s arms, “I have such a treat for you. Rise.”

Soundwave did, nervous about what Megatron was planning in this public place, and still hot anticipation settled in the pit of his stomach.

“Bend forward.”

Megatron's rumbling voice, purring close to his audial like that in such an intimate way was something he had dreamed about for millions of years, and Soundwave shivered with the trickle of heat down his spinal strut. He leaned his lower arms against his desk, and he arched into the touch when Megatron's servo trailed down his back-strut to his aft. A thumb slipped over the panel covering his aft port, before pushing into the seam of his interface panel.

“Open up, Soundwave.”

His panel slid to the side, exposing his valve. The UAV could feel lubricant start to moisten the rim, not yet spilling, but gathering to form little beads along the edges. Megatron’s digits started fiddling with the fine grate that covered the entrance, the piece shutting Soundwave's component from any kind of intrusion, removable only by Megatron's servos. There was a click as it was unlocked, and then Megatron removed it, a single digit entering Soundwave to tease the sensitive walls inside him. The Communications Officer shuddered with pleasure, rocking back ever so slightly. Megatron rumbled a smug chuckle.

“So eager.”

Something smooth and quite heavy settled against the anterior wall of is valve, resting there as a result of his bent over position. Another of the small objects landed beside it, heavy enough to press delightfully against one of his interior nodes. Then another one was eased inside, rolling from the rim of his valve to come to a stop together with the others. A fourth of the ball bearings were slipped into him, and Soundwave frowned behind his screen. _What were these things? What were they supposed to do? They did feel good, but what was his Lord planning with this? He had figured that he was about to be granted release, or at least that Lord Megatron would want to be serviced._

He felt the grate be pushed back into place, heard the magnetic lock engage, and then Megatron manually closed his panel.

“There, much better.” Megatron said, voice smug, and then he patted Soundwave's aft. “As you were, subordinate.” He said, dismissing Soundwave from his attention by walking out of the bridge.

The Drone straightened, the ball bearings inside him rolling along his valve wall with the movement, and his hips twitched with the unexpected stimulation. They gathered at the bottom of his valve, weighing on the grate. The weight pulled the entire cage downwards, making it push harder against his insides, and he let out a shuddering vent as it suddenly stimulated him more than it previously did. He abruptly sat down, bending forward to put his weight against his interface panel in hopes of relieving some of the pressure in his valve, but the movement made the bearings shift around to stimulate him even more, making him shudder.

 _It did not help to push against the panel_. The gap between the inside of the plate, and his interface components allowed the cage inside him to still be pulled down by gravity, stimulating him enough to make his valve start to seep lubricant. Every movement made the balls shift around, pressing against new nodes, and suddenly, concentrating on his work seemed almost impossible.

With a glance around to make sure he was still alone on the bridge, Soundwave let his panel slide away, pressing his bare array against the seat of his chair. Lubricant dribbled out when he opened the plate, leaving drops on the seat under him. Pressing down took some of the pressure away from his insides, but it also pressed against the disk over his node. It wasn't much, but it was enough to let the sealing plate graze the tip of his node, enticing in it's inadequate way, making up for what stimulation he managed to avoid by pressing down to relieve the pressure of the cage. _Equilibrium. How frustrating_. Soundwave actually played a sound clip of a human groaning in his frustration, settling in for a very long shift.

He pulled up the surveillance feeds, putting one process on the recordings he had yet to check, another delved into the live feeds. Starscream had his own channel, of course. The Seeker was a surprisingly good commander when he was left in charge without Megatron, but Soundwave did not underestimate the Air Commander's wish to deactivate Lord Megatron to claim power for himself. Yet another process was dedicated to search for any intel about what the Autobots were up to, and to analyze whatever leads they had on the artifacts they had yet to find and acquire.

No matter how efficient Soundwave forced himself to be, no matter how much he tried to give his processor enough to do to keep him from thinking about the pressure in his valve, he could not seem to manage to shunt the niggling of it from his processor.

Those ball bearings pressed against the walls just above the rim, the closest to truly filled up he had been for days and days, something solid for his calipers to quiver against, instead of the ever present emptiness the cage had caused. The weight made him clench reflexively, making it feel as if the cage was about to slip out, and even though it was futile, the infuriating toy stopping his valve from truly contracting, it made his charge rise none the less. Lubricant drooled out, forming a puddle on the seat, and Soundwave repeatedly aborted the grinding against the seat his hips insisted on wanting to fall into. _The mindless rutting of a technimal_.

His vents picked up, and the Communications Officer was thankful that he was still alone on the bridge. _What would his subordinates think of him if they saw him now, like this, rubbing against his own chair, sitting in a pool of his lubricant?_

It was a sobering thought. _It just wouldn't do to be found like this, like a wanton trollop, ready to go_. Soundwave checked the hallways closest to the bridge and found them blessedly empty. He found a cloth in one of his subspace pockets, and opted for wiping the seat before he wiped himself down. _He couldn't very well leave incriminating evidence on the chair when he left. Then it wouldn't matter how well he polished himself. Everyone would know anyway._

He managed to get his plating fairly clean too, enough so to not be immediately obvious at least, and then he scrunched up the cloth to stuff it inside his panel. It wasn't very comfortable, but at least it would keep his lubricant from seeping out through the seams as he went to the washracks. _The Communal washracks_. Soundwave wasn't much for luxuries, or the thought of commanders having much more privileges than the average Decepticon, but this time, he really wished that his quarters had included private washracks.

The Drone left his workstation, trying not to waddle in an obvious way in spite of the bundle shoved into his panel. Four and a half steps later, he had realized that the cloth wouldn't pose nearly as much a problem as the things in his valve. With every step, the balls inside him shifted, pressing against a new part of his insides, touching nodes haphazardly with enough substance to really make him feel it. _At least the cloth pushed enough against the rim of his valve to ease some of the downward pressure_. It wasn't much of a comfort when his hips jerked for the second time in ten steps, and Soundwave started to realize that if he was going to get to the washracks with even a sliver of his dignity intact, he would be forced to stop walking the second a mech came into view.

Resigned to the humiliating exercise, he extended his field and cranked up his proximity sensors, hurrying his steps to just reach the damned washracks as soon as possible. _What did his Lord get out of this? Megatron wasn't even here to witness his struggles._ Soundwave made it to the first corner, then his hurrying up strategy got the better of him. The UAV stopped, leaning against the wall to collect himself, and to will the charge down a few notches. The quicker he moved, the more the bearings inside him moved, and the more it stimulated him. It was infuriating. It was ingenious. He was at the mercy of his own frame. _No, he was Lord Megatron's, at his Lord's mercy. His Lord was the mech who could make this stop. Or bring him over. Bring him over first, and then make it stop. He was serving Glorious Leader._

Behind his blank screen, Soundwave offlined his optics, imagining sitting on top of one of those glaciers that crowned the poles of the planet, or sitting in a bucket of ice cubes. _Megatron filling him with ice cubes, one by one sliding into his heated core, melting to pool inside, the cold firing up temperature nodes that rarely saw use, the cubes stretching him more and more until he was stuffed full…_

With a noisy ex-vent, Soundwave onlined his optics, mortified by how quickly his mind slipped and fell helmfirst into the gutter. He had always prided himself with being too professional to let the urges of the frame take precedence over professional matters, yet there he was, sneaking off from his shift, just because he was horny. _Would Megatron really approve? His Lord had been the one to put the things into him, but was it another test? A trial to see if he would stay loyal to the cause even with distractions?_

The thought put it into new light. _He was probably failing spectacularly._ With a new and even more urgent sense of duty, Soundwave hurried down the corridor. _He needed to reach the washracks, clean up as to not look like a pleasure drone, and get back to his work_. It would not do to fail his tasks because of something as simple as a building charge. Surely Lord Megatron had endured much worse conditions.

The washracks were blessedly empty, and he grabbed the nearest nozzle, letting the solvent heat while he opened his panel to remove the soaked cloth. It smelled of charge and lubricant, and he rinsed it before he discarded it, not wanting anyone to see the filthy piece of fabric and know what stained it, then he rinsed his legs before turning the stream to his wet array.

It crossed his processor that he should use the steady stream to make himself overload, to let the solvent bring him over the edge to allow him some clarity of his processor, and while he would normally disdain anyone allowing themselves to let their frame rule them on that level, he still increased the pressure and aimed the stream at his array.

The disk over his node effectively stopped it from having an effect, and Soundwave actually played a recording of a growl in pure frustration. _It wasn't funny anymore_. He angled it against his valve instead, hoping it would be enough to stimulate his valve, only to be sorely disappointed. _The mesh of the grate was too fine to allow the stream through_. All he got was a very unsatisfying spray of solvent going everywhere except from into him as it hit the grate. With movements jerky from indignant anger, he turned the solvent off and wiped himself dry, returning to his post with a tightlipped sneer behind his screen.

He hooked up to the console again, even more uncomfortable than before — the walking back and forth to the washracks made the bearings roll around inside him, building even more charge — annoyed at this new game his Lord had come up with. _Highly inappropriate to do in public, not to mention how it was distracting him from his tasks for the Decepticon cause. Why would Lord Megatron jeopardize his most loyal subordinate's efficiency?_

The UAV ground his denta in what he refused to acknowledge to be irritation borne from sexual frustration. _He was angry because he had such a hard time focusing on what he was supposed to do. That was it. Nothing as primitive and base as unreleased lust of the frame. Why was his Lord trying to distract him from the cause?_

He seethed for over an hour, before his advanced processors finally came up with the only logical answer: _Lord Megatron was testing his loyalty to the cause_. Soundwave mentally screenpalmed. _How could he have been too blind to see? Lord Megatron did this as a test, to see if he could win over the needs of his frame, if Soundwave would be able to get his work done even if he was aroused_. It was as ingenious as it was important. A good officer had to be able to put his personal needs aside to complete his work, couldn't be so weak as to give in to something as simple as lust. What would that look like, all the enemy would have to do was send in a very pretty infiltrator to seduce high command and nothing would get done. No, Megatron's course of action was as understandable as it was correct.

_And he had nearly failed, had gone so far as to actually try to grant himself relief. The only thing saving him from the disgrace of a failure was the actual shape of the toy inside him. Lord Megatron has saved him from his own weakness, had managed to show him his failings._

Soundwave bowed his helm in shame when he thought about how he could have failed Lord Megatron, even though his Lord wasn't there to bear witness. _He would have to make it up to Glorious Leader._ With a new fervor, he dug into his work, trying his best to ignore the trickle of fluid slowly filling up his panel, the way his valve would sometimes clamp down on what was never enough to really bring him release. _He would be patient. He would wait for his Lord to decide that he had passed the test._


	8. Chapter 8

It took two more days for Soundwave to pass his Lord's test. Two days of aborted twitches of his hips whenever he walked somewhere. Two days of being forced to stop to lean against the wall whenever he could get away with it, to stifle the charge that ran rampant in his array when the bearings tumbled around inside him with his movements. Two days of sometimes wanting to fall to his knees and bend forward until his aft was up in the air, like a cyberhound in heat, waiting for someone, _anyone,_ to rut into him with abandon. Two days of stuffing the inside of his panel full of cloths to keep his lubricant from leaking through the seams.

He tried once again to get rid of the charge, alone, in his quarters, by rocking his hips violently to make the bearings inside him move around quickly and randomly, providing as much stimulation as possible. He stopped when he finally had to admit defeat, and realized that it would never be enough to get him over the edge, only to get him closer to the peak, leaving him very charged and frustrated. Soundwave, who never had really had a very high drive to interface, suddenly started to understand why some mechs allowed themselves to be so distracted by it, not to mention were so quick to go from one berth to another, should the first one turn cold. Being this aroused was almost painful, and the Drone longed for release in a way he had rarely done before.

When he finally was summoned to Lord Megatron's quarters, he could've sobbed in relief. The UAV hurried there as quickly as he possibly could, considering his increasingly pathetic state. _He had still managed to complete all his work on time, he had not failed with his duties_. The door slid open at his request, and he entered, this time looking around cautiously to make sure that his Lord wasn't testing if he was aware of his surroundings, even in this frazzled state.

Megatron was lounging on the berth, sprawled lazily with his servos behind his helm, optics riveted to his Communications Officer. His smirk widened, sharp denta glinting in the low light, as he took in the aborted jerk of Soundwave's hips as he entered. The door slid shut behind him, and the only thing keeping Soundwave from falling forward and sliding his panel open in a silent plea, was the knowledge that Megatron might not be completely finished with the test yet.

“Come here.” Megatron ordered.

Soundwave took two quick steps, then his hips bucked uncontrollably, and he froze in place for a second before he could continue, slower this time. Megatron's grin was knowing, and kind of feral in it's hunger.

“Open up.” He motioned vaguely at Soundwave's interface panel.

Soundwave allowed the plate to slide open, the piece of cloth still crammed in there almost falling out in his haste to open it. Megatron laughed, servo shooting out to snatch the cloth before it fell to the floor, taking a sniff at it before he subspaced it.

“I see that you're enjoying this.” He stretched his servo out to rub between Soundwave's legs, gathering the drooling lubricant in his servo.

The Warlord held his palm up to show Soundwave the pool of glistening lubricant, and the Drone felt his face-plates flush behind his screen. Megatron grinned victoriously, obviously teeking the embarrassment in his field. Soundwave offlined his optics briefly, ashamed of how his own frame refused to obey him, how it defied his firm conviction that such matters should be kept to private settings, and for appropriate occasions. _Not vying for attention day and night, distracting him from professional matters_.

“Have you done as I told you? Have you kept my things away from others?”

Soundwave didn't fully understand the question. _How could he possibly let anyone have him when he was locked like this? Why would he, when he never indulged himself with others at other times? He had the attention of Lord Megatron. The honor in itself would be enough to keep him from allowing anyone else near him, even without locks and seals_. He still nodded, because it was the truth.

“Good. On the berth, on your back, legs spread.”

The UAV crawled onto the big berth, and rolled over on his back slowly, self-conscious about exposing himself again. Megatron reached between his legs, fiddling with the thing stuck in his valve, and Soundwave heard when the grate covering his entrance was released from it's locks and removed. A digit slipped inside, feeling along his inner walls, pushing the ball bearings around, and he shuddered under the ministrations, longing for release.

“Very good, Soundwave. Now, I want you to pour these things out of yourself —one by one, so don't go too quickly — by arching up and tilting your hips. Can you do that?”

It was a weird thing to do, but not nearly as humiliating as some of the things he already had performed, so Soundwave certainly didn't see any point in hesitating. He arched his back-strut as much as he could, slowly tilting his hips to be able to feel when one ball would get closer to the opening to keep from spilling them all at once.

His vents hitched. Focusing so closely on what was actually going on inside him really heightened his sensitivity, and the weight of the bearings, slowly nudging new nodes the closer they got to his entrance made his optics flicker with the charge surging through his wiring. He could do nothing about it though, just slowly tilt his hips more and more, until one ball finally slipped out of him. Soundwave had to rock back quickly to prevent more from falling out, and it made them roll across his insides. His fans kicked up a notch, and he started the process again, driving his charge even higher.

Lord Megatron's optics were bright as he stared at Soundwave's valve, probably able to see the way those balls rolled around inside him when the Drone repeated the process. Another ball fell out, and his charge burned ever higher. Soundwave was forced to re-route some of his feeds through a resistor to lower the charge and stop his wiring from burning up. Megatron probably didn't notice, he seemed content to watch those little beads emerge from Soundwave's gaping valve.

The last one finally left him, and Soundwave let himself fall back against the berth, his hydraulics strained with the effort in the awkward position.

“That was a good show. Pray tell, are you charged?”

Soundwave dipped his helm in acknowledgement.

“So you would want me to take that thing out and use your valve as I see fit?”

He nodded more eagerly this time, because he was beyond the point of just being the respectful subordinate by now. _He really needed_.

“Convince me. Show me that your worship of me is worthy of my attentions.”

Desperate need had him slithering down from the berth to kneel on the floor in front of it. He bowed deeply, pressing his forehelm to the floor, uncertain how he could possibly subjugate himself more than he had already done. Megatron's pedes were planted on each side of him, a pat on his helm that somehow felt more condescending than approving, and then nothing more happened. _Lord Megatron was waiting for his worship, but what type of worship would his Lord want?_

Hesitantly, he slid his nimble digits up sturdy legs, dipping between plating to caress more sensitive components, nuzzling his screen against silver plating along the way. Megatron hummed, and he took that as approval. That, and the arousal in the Warlord's field, heavy against Soundwave's hyper sensitive one. He reached the inside of Megatron's thigh, nuzzling and stroking.

“Sometimes, it's such a shame that you always insist on having a mask, or a screen covering your face. You know, you could worship me so much better if your intake was accessible. Instead of a hand job, you could've sucked my spike.” Megatron didn't sound wistful, he sounded mildly disappointed. _Annoyed even._

It was a concession Soundwave would rather not make. If his Lord would demand it, he would have no choice, of course, but as long as it wasn't an explicit command, he would not remove his screen.

He did the next best thing by keeping his helm between his Lord's thighs, if Megatron would want to rub his spike against his screen, and started working on the silver interface plate in front of him with reverent servos. Nimble digits easily slipped through the seams to touch more sensitive parts, and his Lord groaned in pleasure.

“I guess you do compensate for the lack of a mouth fairly well. You've convinced me, subordinate. Get on the berth.”

Soundwave hurriedly climbed the berth, charge still running high.

“On your knees and servos.”

The first light caress from Lord Megatron's digits against his swollen valve-lips, the plump folds straining against the rods of the cage where they folded around the rim of his valve had him pushing back with desperate need. Megatron chuckled, digits reaching into him to fiddle with the cage, and Soundwave shuddered with pleasure at every touch.

“Patience there, my desperate little slut.”

Soundwave stiffened at the insult. _He, of all mechs, was not a_ slut. _He served his Lord reverently, and exclusively_.

“I need to get this out before I can do anything at all. You're so eager, so wanton.”

_It was true. He was indeed eager, and this time not just because it was Lord Megatron. Right now, he was so charged, he might even have let one of the Vehicons have a go at him, should nobody else be around._

Soundwave's helm dropped with his shameful realization that he was indeed succumbing to the needs of the frame. If Megatron left him right there, he would stalk the halls of the Nemesis for someone willing to take him, and he would offer up his valve to the first one who accepted the offer. On the spot. _His Lord was right, he was a slut._ Shame made his face burn, thankfully unseen.

The cage was finally removed, folded together — which caused even more stimulation to his sensitive nodes — and pulled out. He still felt like a cave, stretched and open, lubricant drooling out to form an indecent puddle under him. Megatron's digits slipped inside again, pointing out how his valve was still gaping with the action itself.

Then, _finally,_ Lord Megatron kneeled behind him, lining his spike up. Soundwave's valve clenched when the thick head nudged the rim.

“Such an eager little tramp.” Megatron mumbled.

Soundwave didn't have time to bristle against that, even less time to protest. Megatron pushed inside, and it was all the fireworks he had ever seen on Earth, a volcanic eruption, and a nuclear bomb, all rolled into one. Soundwave's optics whited out, shivers went up his back-strut, and his arms quaked, threatening to give in. Nodes long teased, but still unsatisfied finally got the stretch and pressure they deserved, the slow slide of that length into his slick cave felt like it was going on forever. He could feel every single plate of that spike against his hyper sensitized mesh, calipers quivering around what was finally something solid to grasp, and it felt like that spike was reaching beyond the depth of his valve, to his spark-chamber, past that. _Would it come out of his intake to press against the inside of his screen?_ Somehow, he couldn't be entirely opposed to that, because this fullness was glorious, something he had wanted for days without actually knowing how overwhelmingly delicious it would finally feel to get it.

_He could almost get used to the frustrating denial, if that made the final allowance this wonderful._

Then Megatron bottomed out, pelvic plating grinding against his aft, and Soundwave's vents sighed with glorious pleasure, his frame trembling with pent up charge. His valve clamped down around the length, greedy for something solid to fill him like this.

“Oh, yes, such a very _needy_ little slut.” Megatron groaned.

He couldn't really object, not when his frame was so obviously begging for more of that hard component, groveling for the release only his Lord could grant him.

Megatron started to move. Long, slow thrusts of his hips, his pelvic plating clanging against Soundwave's aft every time he hilted himself, and the Drone was lost in a haze of pleasure, of slick slide, delicious stretch, and powerful movements.

“You feel so good, my subordinate, so tight, and wanton, and wet for me, soaking my berth like the little whore you are for your Lord…” Megatron was muttering, and Soundwave knew that it was the Warlord's way to praise him.

The UAV's arms gave out, and he didn't mind, the side of his helm rubbing against the bedding with every powerful thrust into him, vents hiccupping and whining whith the rhythm. Megatron held on to his hips with a denting grip, and he heard the sound of metal creaking under the stress, but he felt no pain, only the pleasure of having his Lord so captivated, his frame screaming for more, harder, faster…

The Communications Officer was flung over the edge as if a triple changer had thrown him, tumbling through the overload, his entire frame pulsing with the sweet release of his desperate need. He saw the darkness at the depth of the abyss he was sinking through, and he welcomed it, knowing his Lord would be pleased with him.


	9. Chapter 9

Reboot was confusing, his systems slow and muddled by the sheer power of the overload he'd had, and Soundwave allowed everything to come online and start up before he onlined his optics. He reset them. _Still his own quarters. But he had fallen into reboot in Lord Megatron's quarters? How did he…?_

His Lord must've carried him back to his own berth. The Drone stretched, testing his motor systems, taking stock of his frame, before he sat up from where he was sprawled on the berth in a rather haphazard manner. It wasn't a surprise that his systems report had a note of interfacing, and an overload, but what was more alarming was that his interface panel was still open. Lord Megatron had carried him down the hallway like that. He looked down, and found his legs sticky with lubricant and transfluid, and his panel was indeed still open. _His valve spread open by that cage._ Soundwave couldn't help but curl his lip-plates in disgust behind his blank screen. Lord Megatron had put it back in when he had finished, without even giving his lover a chance to wash up. _Or ask for permission to go without it._ The grate was in place, leaving Soundwave locked out of his own frame.

With movements jerky with indignation, he grabbed a cloth and started dabbing at his frame to clean away the mess his Lord had left behind when discarding Soundwave for the night. _Lord Megatron could at least have waited until he rebooted and washed up, could've let him leave of his own accord, with a sliver of dignity, if allowing him to spend the night was such an unthinkable thing. Starscream always seemed to be allowed to stay the night._

When he had finally cleaned the worst of the filth from his plating, Soundwave slammed his interface panel shut and laid down to recharge, a cold feeling grinding in his tank. There was still dried fluids clinging to the deeper components in his leg-struts, but he couldn't make himself head for the washracks. _What if someone had seen when his Lord carried him back to his quarters? What if he would meet someone who would know exactly why he was heading for the washracks?_ No, a shower could wait until the morning, when his worst shame probably had subsided. _Hopefully._

Powering down was quick, but his recharge was disturbed several times by upsetting images conjured up by his processor.

_His Lord bent him over the console on the bridge, fragging him, and everyone was watching, as if it was a filthy show._

_“You are the entertainment center of this ship, Soundwave.” Lord Megatron laughed._

He woke up with condensation misting his plating, his tank churning with unease. _Just a recharge flux, but still humiliating. He wanted to serve his Lord, but how high a price would be too much to pay?_ Then he immediately felt bad, because being prideful instead of loyal seemed all too familiar a trait in a certain second in command, and it hade never been one of the things Soundwave saw as one of Starscream's virtues.

When morning arrived to get him up from berth and into work, it saw him tired and unfocused, the lack of good recharge taking it's toll. He checked the hallway before he headed for the washracks, not in the mood to meet someone yet, still wondering if anyone knew.

Getting the dried fluids out of his components did heighten his spirits, and he felt better after the hot shower, the cage still inside him an annoying reminder, but at least void of anything left inside it to tease him. The Drone still wasn't ready to meet his Lord though, wasn't in the mood for being subjected to Glorious Leader's games of testing his loyalty, so he snuck off to get energon from the dispenser in the corridor by the Vehicons' quarters. He grabbed the cube, slowly making his way back to the bridge, hooking up with his wireless connection to the ship's surveillance systems. _He was not going to spy on his Lord, he was merely going to make sure he had safe passage to the bridge. Or maybe he should work out of his own quarters today?_

“Excuse me, Officer? Would you have a moment to look at this new model I've started? Your input would be greatly appreciated.” The sleek Racer asked respectfully.

Soundwave dipped his helm and saw the mech's visor flare with joy. R0M30 had a strong interest in anything Cybertronian — history, architecture, and traditions — and Soundwave had indulged him ever since he realized that. By learning about their history, the Racer would surely be all the more loyal to the Decepticon cause, knowing why this war was so important, why it had started, and why the Autobots were wrong. On several occasions, Soundwave had sent him data bursts with information, photos, and old texts, and R0M30 had eagerly looked through it all, and used it to create small models of parts of old Cybertron. He had done parts of Tarn, a street of Vos, and even the Iacon square. The other Vehicons helped him by collecting knickknacks that would be useful in the creations, and Soundwave had never said anything about that. It was never anything they truly needed elsewhere, and allowing that behavior may keep other, more troublesome pastimes at bay.

“It’s the city hall of Praxus, but I don’t think I'm getting it right. Something feels off, but I can't figure out what.” R0M30 said.

Soundwave looked at the model. It was good, but R0M30 had missed the decorated window arcs, and the shape of the doors that was a typically Praxian trait in architecture. Soundwave sent him a data burst with pointers.

“Oh! Thank you so much, Officer!” R0M30 said happily after opening the file with a picture of the building in question, “I’ll start working on it right away, thank you for your time, Sir!”

Soundwave dipped his helm in acknowledgement, then he left, as R0M30 was already starting to gather things to set to work on his model.

Getting back into the corridor brought Soundwave to the realization that the Vehicons didn't treat him any differently than before. _They couldn't know about last night. Surely, he would notice if they did?_ Relief unknotted his tank, and he felt lighter as he walked down the corridor, but he still wasn't keen on seeing his Lord just yet. _Lord Megatron might come up with something new, and he needed a little more time to process everything._ Soundwave headed back to his own quarters, deciding to work from his own room for the day, even if they had major plans to carry out. He would work at least as good in his own room. _Without distractions that would make him less efficient than he could be._

Checking the surveillance as he went, he successfully managed to avoid Megatron, and arrived back in his quarters without incidents, or awkward confrontations. The Drone indulged himself with stretching out on his berth, laying comfortably while he let his data cables connect to his console. He folded his arms, resting his helm on his servos, offlining his optics as he allowed himself to slip deeper into the systems of the Nemesis. To anyone watching, he would look like he was resting, not at all like he was hard at work, but appearances didn't matter. Soundwave was doing what he should, with the diligence he owed the cause. He picked up where he left off, but a small warning light caught his attention, a warning he had failed to notice before, in his rather distracted state. He pulled up the information about it, and what it showed had him shooting up from his spot on the berth, suddenly tense.

_Fragging Autobots!_ The navigation disk had been damaged, and to his horror, Soundwave realized that Lord Megatron's latest plan would not be possible until it was fixed. _And he couldn’t even blame the Autobots, it was all his fault, because he had allowed himself to be distracted by matters of his frame. He had succeeded with the small part of the test, but he had ultimately failed in the big picture. Lord Megatron would be so disappointed. He had put the success of the Decepticon cause second, after his own personal matters._

Starscream was already navigating the ship closer to position, and Soundwave's processor stalled for long seconds, spark spinning so wildly, he was getting dizzy. In panic, he hit the human internet, scouring it at a pace no human computer would be able to reach, looking for a solution, a way to put his frag up right, before he failed his Lord. _How would Lord Megatron ever be able to see such a spectacular failure as anything less than treason? Such negligence wasn't a mere failure, it was bordering on sabotage against the cause._ His vents hitched at the thought.

_A telescope._ Hope surged quickly when he read through the specifications, but he realized that he would not be able to control it without being there. Unplugging from his console, Soundwave ran through the base, and not giving a damn about protocol, he transformed before he even reached the flight deck, shooting away from the ship as fast as he could possibly push his frame to go.

Either nobody noticed his hasty departure, or nobody cared, because he made it to the telescope without anybody contacting him with questions. Luckily, the place was empty, and breaking in proved easy. The UAV found a computer, thanking his luck that human firewalls were not up to standards that would make this too slow a process for him to pull it all off, and he quickly got into the systems and managed to hook them to the Nemesis.

::Soundwave: relaying coordinates.:: He said over comms in his preferred monotone.

::About time. Where the Pit have you been?:: Starscream responded.

::Ship navigational system: damaged. Soundwave: setting up alternative.::

::Very well.:: Starscream sniffed, and Soundwave followed as the Seeker lined the space bridge up.

Suddenly, the ship moved off alignment again.

::Soundwave! What is going on?!:: Starscream barked.

_He did not cause that. Everything was flowing smoothly, but then something suddenly interfered with his commands to the ship._ He opened the security camera feeds of the telescope array, already connected to them to make sure he could get in and out undetected.

_The Autobots' pet young fleshlings. Inferior organics._ He allowed one data cable to disconnect, reaching it into the room they were in to make sure they could not interfere anymore. They scrambled to defend themselves when he attacked, going for the little one by the computer. _They were meddling with things way above their paygrade, of course he had to do something about it._ Their flailing and squawking was kind of entertaining, actually, and he found some amusement in keeping them occupied while he put the telescope back in position.

The little female managed to chop at his cable, and while it hurt, it didn't do any damage. _Insolent insects._ He was losing patience with their little games. Soundwave grabbed the axe, and they squealed rather delightfully when they thought he was going to kill them, but he was done with his work, and not in the mood to draw the ire of Optimus Prime more than necessary. The UAV withdrew his data cable, bringing the axe back to him, then he cut the hardline with it, making the telescope stick in the position he had set, no matter what the annoying little pests would do. They burst into the room, and their foolhardy bravery was something he could almost admire, but he had wasted too much time there. _His place was at Lord Megatron's side, and if he hadn't fragged up so very badly, he would still have been on the ship, where he should be._ The Autobots were doing their best to thwart the plans, of course, and he was needed there, to help his Lord.

The female fleshling grabbed her communication device, and snapped a picture of him. _How rude. Didn't humans know that you were supposed to ask first?_ He took a picture of them too, pointedly not thinking about what a ridiculous gesture it was to do it back. _It could be good to inform the crew about what the crafty critters looked like, if nothing else._ Then he left them standing there, intakes ajar, and he stepped outside to transform into his alt mode, flying back towards the Nemesis as fast as he could, getting ready to join the battle.

Soundwave listened in to the chatter over the comms, checked on every piece of surveillance he could access to get a clear picture of what was going on. What little he could gather from the spacebridge platform, Megatron seemed to be winning against the Autobots. Soundwave shut the feed to be able to go even faster, wanting to get there to stand by his Lord's side and assist him when they finally defeated the Autobots. _Why did he avoid Lord Megatron earlier this morning? It was ridiculous, small-minded of him. He should've been on that bridge, he should've fixed this problem before they commenced with the plan._ He was halfway to the spacebridge when the comms suddenly crackled to life, laced with static as if something had disrupted the transmitters and they were still not functioning properly.

::The Autobots blew up the spacebridge! Megatron's spark has been extinguished! All Decepticons, hail me, Lord Starscream, your new leader!::

Soundwave stopped mid air, hovering in a way his Earthen counterpart could not, shocked into a stupor.

_What had he done?! It was his fault. If he hadn't fragged up and missed the broken navigation disk, if he had fixed that in time, he wouldn't have needed to fly off to set up an emergency plan. He would've been right there, fighting with Lord Megatron. Together, they could've defeated the Prime. But no, he had been too busy with his frame's desires to notice the problem in time, and then he had spent the morning sulking over his own wounded pride. He was no better than Starscream, just as vain, just as inadequate in his service. It was the ugly truth, he just had refused to see it for too long._

Dejectedly, at much lower speed, he returned to the Nemesis. He landed on the flight deck, walking slowly through the corridors until he found the rest of the crew, gathered on the bridge in front of Starscream, the Seeker pacing back and forth on the raised part of the floor where Lord Megatron's throne stood. _The throne where he had served his Lord, like he should, but ungratefully allowed his own humiliation to sully the moment, instead of appreciating the honor fully. The throne, where his Lord would not sit again._

“I, Lord Starscream, am now in command of the Decepticons, and I will lead us to victory!” Starscream said in that haughty tone only he could manage.

There was a murmur spreading throughout the crew, the Vehicons looking back and forth between each other, doubt clear in their fields.

“How are we supposed to do that without Lord Megatron?” Someone asked.

Starscream glared in the general direction of the MTO who dared utter those words, but he obviously wasn't certain who said it, and Soundwave — who knew the individual Vehicons much better — would not rat him out to the new Leader.

“Of course we can! I'm _Starscream,_ Emperor of Destruction, the _brilliant_ leader who will succeed where Megatron failed over and over.”

“Sure. Whatever you say, boss.” Someone muttered, and there were snickers from quite a few of the Eradicons.

_It wasn't the first time Starscream declared himself the leader of the Decepticons, and he could work fairly well with the Seeker, but right now, he felt too crushed under his own guilt, too exhausted to even try to figure out what they were going to do now._ Starscream's voice raised in pitch as the angry rant got louder and quicker, and Soundwave stared numbly at his new Leader, dialing down the sensitivity of his audials for the time being.

With tired steps, shoulders slumping, he walked down empty hallways towards his quarters, gathering all the surveillance files he could find from the time of the battle. He was going to have a cube of energon, and then he would retreat into his quarters to go through it all, even if it took him all night. It may be something as simple as an act of self flagellation, but that was the least he could do to show proper respect for his fallen Lord.


	10. Chapter 10

Lazerbeak was what kept him going the following week. Soundwave went through the motions, did his tasks as head of surveillance, but it all felt as monotone as the voice he preferred to use when speaking over comms. _His Lord was effectively indisposed, and it was_ his _fault._ They were all taken off guard, even Starscream. Sure, he was always quick to declare himself the leader of the Decepticons, but — not unlike an Earthen dog actually succeeding with catching a car — the Seeker didn't have any immediate plans for how to achieve his grand goals. In short, the Decepticons were coasting, ambling along with no clear cut path for how to actually succeed with taking over the Universe. Or Earth for that matter.

Soundwave did whatever was needed to cater to the whims Starscream had as the Seeker processorstormed for the heading of their next plan, and then the UAV returned to his quarters. _When he didn't sit by his Lord's side, keeping all his sensors trained on the Decepticon leader, in case there was a sign — even the faintest trace of hope — that his Lord would wake up and resume their battles._

So far, he hadn't been able to catch even the smallest blip of activity from Glorious Leader. _And it was all his fault._ Lazerbeak waited in their quarters, making sure that Soundwave refueled and recharged as he should, and pressed in close, field a smooth humming of comfort, and Soundwave spilled the secret that it was his fault that Lord Megatron may be gone forever. _He didn’t want to think like that, but with every day that passed without the Warlord showing any signs of increasing activity, his hope died a little more_.

She disagreed, of course, telling him over and over that mistakes were probable to happen at times, and that it was merely bad luck that _this_ was the time he missed something, and Soundwave ground his denta behind his screen, and couldn't force himself to reconcile with her kind words and data bursts, her soothing field, because he still couldn't bring himself to tell her how he had allowed his own carnal needs to cloud his judgement. Instead, he smoothed out his field, and he told her that he knew that she was right, trying to placate her into not pushing him for more details. She was suspicious, clearly seeing the deceit in his easy acceptance, but backed off and didn't push him for more information, which only fueled his bad conscience to burn in two directions.

It took him quite some time to even acknowledge the other issue his Lord's condition left behind, because he partially saw it as penance, a very fitting way for him to be reminded of his failings. _The cage for his valve was still left inside, and the other obstructive devices where still in place_. Soundwave wasn't much for self service, but the cage did sometimes push on a particularly sensitive node, making his charge creep upwards. And the disc covering his spike made it impossible to wash. Waking up after overloading in his recharge was a whole new level of discomfort. The transfluid stuck behind the seal inflated his sheath uncomfortably, and he had no way to get it out. The Drone tried to wash it away, but it was impossible — what little solvent he managed to get inside just stretched him more and added to the discomfort — and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't manage to pry a gap between his components and the foreign one to make the fluids pour out quickly. No, he was forced to endure how it seeped out in an aggravatingly slow fashion, keeping the inside of his panel constantly wet and sticky. Soundwave spent the day going back and forth to the maintenance room to clean out his panel to keep his disgust to a minimum. At the end of it, some of the goo till stayed inside, making him feel filthy.

That was the beginning of what would finally bring him to the medbay. It took him several days to reconcile with doing it, but when the discomfort had turned to itching, just to evolve into being painful, Soundwave realized that he had no options. Somebody had to get the toys out of him for his health's sake, and even though he had tried rather fervently to do it himself, he had to admit defeat.

The Communications Officer went to the medbay when he was certain only Breakdown was there. Knock Out had left for what Soundwave presumed was another race on the surface of the planet, and for once, the UAV was thankful for the Medical Officer’s penchant for engaging in the juvenile activities of the resident organics. Breakdown was far more likely to actually stick to his oaths of patient confidentiality. _And he was fairly certain that Breakdown — as a Top — had more experience with removing chastity devices than Knock Out had._

“Oh, good evening, Officer. Knock Out is unavailable at the moment. Is there something I can do for you, or should I take a message for him?” Breakdown said, standing from his spot by the repair table, saluting him.

_“Need your assistance.”_ He wrote across his screen.

Breakdown fidgeted, not by much, but enough for Soundwave to notice. “If you're certain, but are you sure you don't want to wait for Knock Out? He is the trained Medic, after all…” The Bruiser trailed off hesitantly.

_“Soundwave: certain.”_ He wrote.

Breakdown visibly steeled himself, straightening his back-strut. “Alright, how may I help you, Sir?”

It was Soundwave's turn to strengthen his resolve. With a deep vent, he climbed onto the medberth, bracing himself on his elbows as he spread his legs and opened his panel. Breakdown's optics flicked down to his array, and Soundwave felt his face flush behind his screen, immensely thankful for having a visor when Breakdown looked up at him again, optics bright with surprise.

_“Remove.”_ He wrote on his screen.

“Are you sure you don't want to wait for Knock Out?”

Soundwave nodded, and slumped back against the berth, unable to look Breakdown in his optics any longer, even if he knew that the mech couldn't actually see his face. Embarrassment burned through his entire frame, and he reeled his field in to not broadcast it so openly.

His peripherals told him that Breakdown leaned in to have a closer look, and the UAV offlined his optics, even if it made no difference with his sensitive peripheral systems fully aware of what went on around him, even if he couldn't see.

“These are coded toys, designed to only be removable by the one who put them in. I need to hack them to get them out. It will take a while, and it may still be uncomfortable to extract them. I could go for manually dismounting them, but then I have to disassemble your entire array. You will be indisposed for several days.

Soundwave took a deep vent. What a horribly embarrassing mess. But he had no choice, because as much as he worked well with Starscream, he would not trust the Seeker to command the Decepticons without some level of supervision. He could surveil it from the medbay, of course, but how much could he actually influence the Seeker's decisions when he was having his interface components picked apart? _Starscream would find out, and he would never take Soundwave seriously again. Surely, the Air Commander had never found himself in such a precarious situation, and he would not understand the importance — and the pleasure — of loyally following his Lord's orders. Soundwave mentally cringed when realizing what he was doing. There he was, having Breakdown working at removing the toys, going against the wishes of Lord Megatron. When Glorious Leader woke up from his coma — because the alternative was still unthinkable — he would be so disappointed with Soundwave's increasing list of failures._

Breakdown rearranged the berth to support Soundwave’s pedes, spread wide to let the medical assistant have full access to his Officer’s array. Breakdown sank down on a stool, prodding the toys, and Soundwave couldn't help squirming under the intense attention. The UAV followed the wireless signal as Breakdown set to work on the toys, managing to connect, but so far without cracking the code. _Maybe he could do it himself, now that he knew that it needed to be unlocked to be removed? But Lazerbeak was in his quarters, so then he'd be forced to explain why he needed her to leave. Or even worse; what he was doing, and why._

“These things lock in their widest possible position, so I need at least a partial unlock to be able to press it into a smaller setting, then I'll have to pull it out. This is high class devices, they will not give easily. I'll need to force them out, and I'm sorry to say that it'll be uncomfortable. I'll use lube, and you will get some pain re-routers, but it will still be a question of some brute force. I'm sorry, Officer.” Breakdown said as Soundwave heard a lock click from somewhere in his array.

_Great. So no fixing it himself, then_.

He nodded, looking around the medbay to distract himself while Breakdown connected a few re-router sticks to his medical ports, fetching the spray lubricant from a shelf. Soundwave's optics fell on a glowing sliver of something floating in energon. _Was that dark energon?_ He motioned to it questioningly, and Breakdown stopped to look in the direction he was waving.

“Starscream found a shard of dark energon. He brought it here for him and Knock Out to do some experiments, in the hopes that it could be altered to make the effects easier to control.” The Bruiser explained.

Soundwave kept staring at the shard, finally distracted from what his subordinate was doing between his legs. He vaguely noticed that the nozzle of the lube canister slipped into the sheath of his spike, but he did feel the coolness as the lubricant trickled inside, slicking him up, and it soothed his painful component slightly.

Then Breakdown slipped his finger into the sheath, and that got Soundwave's attention back to the proceedings. The re-routers dulled the pain to a deep ache, but he still tensed when Breakdown forcefully pressed the disc back one setting. He heard it lock in place, and then the digit slipped out, relieving the uncomfortable fullness.

“I may be able to force it one size smaller, but the discomfort of doing that will probably be worse than taking it out as it is, so I will try to dislodge it now. There might be some mild tearing of the rim, but I doubt it will be worse than the pressure I would have to exert to click it back another notch.” He said apologetically, looking up at Soundwave.

He UAV nodded his consent. _The faster it was out, the better_.

Then Breakdown's digits slipped into the sheath again, hooking under the disc, and Soundwave ground his denta as it was turned ninety degrees, pressing in between the sheath and the head of his spike. In spite of the re-routers dulling him, his frame started trembling with the sharp pain as Breakdown got a grip on the thing and pulled, forcing it out through the rim. For a moment, the Drone thought he would fall into reboot from the agony, but then it finally slipped free, lubricant, energon and old transfluid oozing out of the rim.

“This doesn't look nice. There's some corrosion, and this transfluid is very deteriorated, having burned the components. I need to wash this thoroughly, and apply some nanite enriched lubricant. Can you extend your spike, please?”

His face-plates burned behind the screen, enough to almost convince Soundwave that his screen must be glowing pink with his embarrassment, but still he sent the command to the component, pressurizing it enough to make it come out of it's sticky hiding place, but not to be fully rigid. Breakdown’s servo was firm, yet gentle when he held it, grabbing a cloth and some mild solvent from a tool cart next to the medberth.

The solvent was cool and soothing against the component that had been trapped for so long, and Breakdown started to clean it with slow, careful movements, meticulous to get every inch of Soundwave’s spike clean. He flushed the sheath with more of the solvent, gently easing a clothed digit inside to wipe all the grime away, before returning to rub at the spike in his servo.

Just when Soundwave thought things couldn't get any worse, his spike started to get harder, more fluid being pumped into it as an automatic response to the stimulation, and nothing the Communications Officer did could stop it from happening. He shuddered involuntarily with pleasure, field flaring out of control with mortification as his spike hardened even more in Breakdown's careful servo.

“Don't be ashamed, Officer. It's a natural — perfectly healthy — response to touches like this. I've seen it before, it's nothing to be ashamed of.” Breakdown almost crooned the words, field reaching out to comfort the UAV.

It didn't do much to stem Soundwave's embarrassment, and it didn't get better when the head of his component was starting to leak pre-transfluid, and his fans clicked on to cool his heating frame. Charge was crawling along his circuits, and he couldn't quite tell if it was uncomfortable, or if it felt good, because the latter would be confusing when he was so embarrassed about it.

“There, I'm finished.”

_Oh, the contradiction of being relieved that the embarrassing procedure was finished, and at the same time disappointed that Breakdown would stop._ And then he realized to his dismay that he couldn't depressurize his spike. It was still fully pressurized, and the charge in his systems was even higher, and he would really need to get rid of it to make sure he didn't fry something. Soundwave resisted the urge to facepalm.

Breakdown seemed to understand his predicament. “You should get rid of the charge before we continue. For safety's sake.”

The Communications Officer heaved a deep vent. He wasn't all that inclined to play with his spike to begin with, and even if he left the room, Breakdown would still know what he was doing.

“Look, if you overload now, that may help with the extraction of the cage in your valve, as you will be more relaxed. And if that procedure raise your charge too, it won't as easily reach damaging levels as if we were to continue right now.”

_Of course. What choice did he have then?_

“If you don't want to do it yourself, I can do it for you, Sir. It would be an honor.” Breakdown offered.

Soundwave's helm snapped around and behind his screen, he stared incredulously at the Bruiser. _Megatron had never showed the least bit of interest in his spike. But Megatron was still in a coma, and Breakdown's servo felt very good, still slowly stroking his spike. Subordinates could show their devotion by serving their superiors, he knew very well how honored he was whenever Megatron gave him attention, allowed him to serve his Lord._

“Of course it’ll stay between the two of us, Sir.”

Soundwave took a deep vent to steady his nerves, then he dipped his helm to show his acceptance of Breakdown's offer. The servo on his spike shifted to a more purposeful grip, sliding all the way up to the head to be slicked up by the transfluid beading there. It was such a long time since anyone played with his spike, and Soundwave was already charged, so he bucked up into the skillful touch, his hesitance quickly forgotten. Breakdown hummed in amusement, but obeyed the silent request to increase the pace, and started stroking Soundwave with the clear intention to giving the UAV what he wanted. The Bruiser twisted his servo as he stroked along Soundwave's spike, rubbed his thumb over the sensitive head, and the Drone's hips twitched and jerked into the movement.

_It was so much better than he remembered, was it just because it was long ago, or was it because Breakdown was so skilled, and the last mech to touch him like this hadn't been? It wasn't hard to understand the appeal to Megatron to have someone else do this for him, it_ _felt so much better than doing it himself. But what if he wasn't good at it? He probably should practice more, to make sure he was perfectly skilled when Megatron woke up._

The mere thought of serving his Lord had Soundwave racing towards the edge, but just as he teetered on the cusp of an unusually strong overload, Breakdown stopped. The UAV bucked in desperation, trying to bring himself over, but Breakdown followed his movements in a frustratingly effective block of his intentions.

“Do I have permission to start working right away when you have overloaded, Sir? I may get a head start if I work while you're rebooting.

_Business, business, what about pleasure?_

He nodded, too far gone to think about it for long, and Breakdown answered by immediately resuming his ministrations.

Then he was off, flying over that edge, hips twitching up to meet every stroke of that servo, entire frame tense, the overload pulsing through his every cable, every line. Soundwave's HUD told him about all the systems that started shutting down in rapid succession as he fell into reboot, but he felt completely safe with it.


	11. Chapter 11

The cage was out, and the disc over his anterior node was removed before he rebooted, and it was a greater relief than he had anticipated, but that didn't last for long. Soundwave was still splayed out on the medberth when Knock Out strode into the medbay. Self consciously, Soundwave's helm whipped up to look down his frame, but there were no signs of his overload; he was cleaned up, and his spike was back behind his panel. _The overload Knock Out's lover had given him, one of the hardest overloads he had ever experienced. Shouldn't he be ashamed?_ The Communications Officer couldn't bring himself to be ashamed about that, Breakdown did serve his superior, after all, and that was something honorable.

“I want Knock Out to take a look at your valve, if that's alright, Sir? Just to make sure the micro tears isn't going to become a problem. I won't tell him anything about the other things.” Breakdown murmured to him.

Soundwave wasn't keen on having yet another mech rooting around down there, but Knock Out was the certified medic of the two, and if Megatron woke up soon, he didn't want to be unable to serve Glorious Leader just because he was being ridiculous about professionals touching him, so he nodded to Breakdown, and waited awkwardly, pedes in the stirrups, while Breakdown talked to Knock Out.

The UAV offlined his optics and tried to think of something else when the Racer came to check his valve, slender talons dipping inside to palpate, sharp optics scrutinizing the Officer's insides.

“There's some minor tearing here, and it hasn't healed properly, attracting some mild corrosion, but nothing a little nanite cream, and a few days off the spike won't fix.” Knock Out said, surprisingly crude. “I didn't think you were into the rough stuff, Sir?”

Soundwave flushed behind his screen. _Rough stuff?_ Or was Knock Out just being a nosey brat? The medic did enjoy gossip after all. What Decepticon didn't take pleasure in finding out juicy details? _He just never figured that he would wind up the one the gossip was about._

“I mean, it's nothing to be ashamed of, but if you do things like that, maybe you should consider using more lube? And if there's any risk of damage, no matter how tiny it may seem, it's not bad to wash with mild disinfectant, and then put some cream on it.”

_Primus, kill him with embarrassment, but was he really getting advice on how to take care of himself after rough interfacing? Not that it would've been useful, not with the cage put back inside him as soon as Megatron had been satisfied with his service. Hopefully, Knock Out would stick to his vows of patient confidentiality, because he sure didn't want Starscream to find out about this_. He nodded vigorously — too vigorously — in an attempt to cover his embarrassment, and then he slammed his panel shut and sat up, taking the jar of cream Knock Out held out for him.

“Anyway, use that twice a day until it feels healed.” Knock Out said, looking thoughtfully at Soundwave. “You know, it wasn't enough damage for me to outright say you were assaulted, but tears like that doesn't come easily either. I'm not going to judge what you do between the berth posts, but you really shouldn't go this long before taking care of it when there’s damage.”

It was rare that Soundwave's temper flared, but his embarrassment about it all, along with the fear of this getting known, the reasons for why he hadn't taken care of himself — _the reason why he got distracted and played a part in putting Lord Megatron in a coma due to his negligence_ — made him lash out. His field whipped out in anger, and before he got ahold of himself, he had already started playing a sound clip of Knock Out moaning and whining to Breakdown not to stop, along with a clip of the medic begging the Front liner not to tell anyone about his predilections.

Knock Out grimaced, his own field flaring with embarrassment and worry, and it was enough to convince the Communications Officer that the parts of his secrets that had become known would still be safe with the ambitious CMO.

“Very well, Sir. I won't mention it again. I think we're done here, Sir. I bid you a good night.” Knock Out said smoothly, but it was obvious that he was trying to appease the acting second in command.

Soundwave nodded curtly before he slid down from the berth and hurried back towards his own quarters, going through all the data from around the time he was rebooting, and Breakdown was working on him. The Drone stiffened when he saw that one of his subspace pockets had been opened, and his servo reflexively slipped into it to check what was in it. It had been empty before.

Slim digits wrapped around the contents, and even though he could guess what it was by feel alone, he still pulled it out to stare at it.

_The toys. Breakdown had given them back to him, as if he would want them, as if they were his._ He resisted the urge to fling them down the hallway, because someone might pick them up, and where they came from would be the mystery of the century to the nosey crew. _Not that he was much for religion, but Primus forbid that anybody found out that they were his_. The Communications Officer couldn't have that, so he stuffed them back into his subspace, uncertain what to do with them.


	12. Chapter 12

As acting second in command, Soundwave luckily got other things to deal with than just figuring out how to discard a bunch of sex toys. Namely, trying to get his Lord back. He had sat by the Decepticon Leader every day, willing him to finally wake up, but there hadn't been a single life sign. He still sat there, faithful as ever, and that's where Starscream, and Knock Out found him.

He flashed a question mark on his screen as answer.

“About Lord Megatron.” Knock Out added.

Soundwave tilted his helm, and behind his screen, he narrowed his optics. _Something about the way both of them behaved made warnings flash in his processor._

“Megatron shows no sign at all of recovering. It pains me to say, but letting him go would be the most merciful thing to do.” Starscream said solemnly.

_Letting him go? What did they mean?_ Soundwave refused to understand.

“His processor has been completely still for all this time, spark support and external fuel lines and coolant feed is the only thing that's keeping him from deactivating. He's not even a drone in this state, and I agree with Starscream. We want to shut the spark support down.” Knock Out explained.

Soundwave stared blankly at them for what felt like an eternity. _They wanted to deactivate their Lord._ Processed energon rose to the back of his intake, threatening to spill forward, but he pushed it down. Despair and sorrow slowly morphed to anger. _Of course the treacherous Seeker would see this as the perfect opportunity to seize control of the Decepticons. He had declared himself leader even before they had been certain about Megatron being deactivated, but with Glorious Leader not declared decommissioned, the troops were still not ready to crown him king. And now he had rallied the support of another Officer to get his way._

The Drone shook his head angrily, the red “NO” flashing on his screen leaving no doubt of what he thought about the idea.

“Think about it, Soundwave! Do you really think Megatron would want this? To be seen like this? Our proud Leader, the strong warrior, an undefeated gladiator, laying motionless on a berth for the rest of his functioning, unable to even wash his own frame. Like this, he's no more than one of those plants covering the planet below us.” Starscream spoke with a passion, and Soundwave had to admit that he could understand why Knock Out seemed inclined to follow the Flier.

_Wasn't the traitorous Seeker right this time? His proud Lord, reduced to this. Would it really be what Megatron would want? But wasn't there anything more that they could do? Dark energon had resurrected mechs before…_

He wrote as much on his screen, and Starscream's optics narrowed in annoyance.

“No! Absolutely _not!_ You saw what the Terrorcons are like. Would you really risk turning Lord Megatron into one of those? We have no idea what will happen! And we have no more dark energon, do you really think it would be wise to jeopardize our mechs in search of it?”

Knock Out fidgeted nervously, optics flicking back and forth between his superiors. Soundwave caught on to it like a cyberhound scents weakness. _Because Knock Out knew that they did indeed have dark energon, and he was clearly not as comfortable to lie about it as Starscream was_. Soundwave allowed his field to extend, exerting pressure on the CMO by allowing a clear threat to seep into it, while he still addressed Starscream with what he wrote on his screen.

_“Megatron: remains active. Soundwave: Runs calculations.”_

“It’s ridiculous! You know as well as I do that this is it, it is time for us to let Megatron find peace, and we can continue with our work for the cause. He went out in battle, just like he would've wanted.” Starscream scoffed impatiently, talons clearly itching to pull out the plug to the systems that kept Megatron's frame going.

“Ehm, Starscream? Maybe we can just let him run the calculations first? I mean, what harm will come of it? One day more or less, just to make sure it's the right decision…” Knock out said, sounding very disconcerted.

Starscream glared at his ally, suddenly not as supportive anymore, but without the support of another Officer, the Seeker obviously found it better to retreat. _And try to come up with a new plan, no doubt._ “Fine. Run your calculations, but don't be surprised when you find that I'm right. I'm just thinking about Lord Megatron's dignity here, because right now, he has none.”

With that, the self proclaimed leader of the Decepticons swiveled on his heel and stomped out, wings held high and stiff in the haughty pose that was one of his trademarks, the Racer trailing behind, throwing an uncertain glance at Soundwave over his shoulder.

Soundwave went to stand beside his Lord, looking down at the lax face-plates, lacking both the scowl and the smirk he normally alternated between. He looked Megatron over closely, scrutinized his entire frame in a way he usually wouldn't. _Dust covered silver plating, there was traces of a small leak on his thigh, and a few stains showed the onset of light corrosion. It really wasn't dignified. Maybe Starscream was right? How had he failed to notice the way Megatron's frame deteriorated right in front of him?_

But in his spark, Soundwave refused to accept that this was to be the end. _They still had a shard of dark energon, it had activated his Lord before. He really needed to go back to his quarters and make those calculations, needed to turn it all over in his helm to make the right decision._

One thing was certain though, and that was that he wasn't going to allow Megatron to look like this. Whether they would revive him, or pull out that plug — and his spark constricted painfully at that thought — he would not allow Megatron to look anything but his best.

Soundwave went back to his quarters, but he only stopped there long enough to gather his polish and other supplies. He was going to fix that corrosion, and he was going to polish Megatron until he truly looked the part of the Glorious Leader of the Decepticons, before running his calculations. This just wouldn't do.

Lord Megatron waited for him, of course, with patience the mech never would show when conscious, and Soundwave methodically mixed the solvent to the perfect blend, and started to wipe down Megatron's frame with carefully measured movements, relishing the feel of his Lord's plating under his servos as he carefully cleaned plate after plate. _Megatron was warm, felt so alive under his digits._

He UAV couldn't help but steal glances at the Warlord's face, just waiting for that slight quirk of his intake, a low glow of optics that would indicate that Megatron noticed, that he enjoyed the loving ministrations that Soundwave poured all his devotion into, but he couldn't catch a single sign of his Lord noticing his actions.

_It didn't mean anything. Maybe he noticed in his spark, but his frame was unable to respond?_

He rubbed harder the second time, really trying to get the grit that was still left after the last battle cleaned away. _The one they should've won, if he just hadn't been such an easily distracted fool._ Soundwave's slender digits easily slipped between the plates of Megatron's sturdy frame, reaching the cables and wires underneath, and the Drone cleaned them out as meticulously as the planes of his Lord's plating.

Until he reached Megatron's pelvic components. _Should he? How much?_

Of course he couldn't leave Megatron's plating there sullied when the rest of him was pristine, but how far should he really go? Beneath the seams? Or should he open the plates to completely clean Megatron? It would be kind of invasive to connect to his Lord — not to mention open his plates — without given consent. _On the other servo, it wouldn't do if his Lord woke up from his coma to find his frame filthy and deteriorating. He would like to keep using his equipment, and it would need to be up to standard._

After long minutes of dawdling, cleaning as deeply as he could through the seams, Soundwave finally decided. _He should definitely clean Lord Megatron's spike, in case his Lord would want to use it at a later date, but he should not touch his Lord's valve, because he had never been allowed the honor to see it when Megatron was conscious, and he wasn’t going to impose himself on Glorious Leader when he was unconscious._

The Communications Officer easily clipped one of his cables to one of Megatron's sockets, and slipped through the strangely relaxed firewalls. It felt very alien, the way he could promenade through Megatron's systems without the ever present booby traps and defenses coming at him, the way it felt like walking through an abandoned city: the landscape was there, but the inhabitants were missing.

It was easy to get to the right protocols, and Megatron's spike extended into Soundwave’s waiting servo. With a clean, soft cloth, the Drone cleaned the component with the same care as the rest of his leader.

_If Megatron was deactivated, he would never be allowed to take care of this piece of art again, would never be granted the honor to please his Lord. No matter how reluctant he had been to some of the games they played, it was just him being a prude, and he hadn't relished the honor as he should. And now that privilege could be taken away, and Soundwave hadn't even appreciated that honor properly when he had the chance._

The thought was enough to convince him. No matter what the calculations showed him — and he would still run them later, alone in his room, when he didn't need to have all his attention focused on his Lord — he would make sure they tried the dark energon. His Lord deserved his devotion, and Soundwave needed a new chance to show it — to be better than before.


	13. Chapter 13

Starscream would say “no”. Soundwave was certain, because his calculations said so. And his calculations said that it was a forty eight percent chance that Megatron would wake up, and seventeen percent that he would not have any side effects from the dark energon, so the hundred percent likelihood of Starscream saying no seemed very reasonable.

_But forty eight was still almost 50/50, and it was a gamble Soundwave would be willing to take, the odds were too good to shoot down, no matter what the power hungry Seeker said._

So he didn't head for the flight deck, where he already knew Starscream to be pacing a track in the floor. No, Soundwave headed for the medbay.

“Oh, good morning Officer! How may I help you today?”

There was a telltale — no matter how minuscule — stiffening of Knock Out's frame when he turned around to find Soundwave stepping through the doors. The Communications Officer might've thought it was because the Medic had found out what kind of _service_ Breakdown had provided, if not for the quickly concealed nervous worry in the Racer's field. While Knock Out was definitely unhappy to see Soundwave, it had nothing to do with what had gone down with his assistant.

_“Revive Megatron.”_ He wrote on his screen, because Soundwave was never much for pleasantries. _They were mostly lies anyway, just a way to cover true intentions, and he was not much for it when not trying to fool the enemy._

“Are you certain, Sir? We do not know what we bring back…” The Medic trailed off.

Of course Soundwave had blocked the comm lines from the mechs in close proximity, as well as surveilling all signals, when he went into the medbay, and he wasn't even half surprised when he found and intercepted an outgoing comm from Knock Out to Starscream. _So the Medic felt like he needed back up. Too bad he wouldn't get it in this betrayal of their Glorious Leader._

Soundwave tilted his helm, appraising the Racer with his visor left dark and empty of questions or answers. _He could always play some of the footage he had from the surveillance cameras if Knock Out chose this moment to be difficult._ The Drone readied a particularly incriminating sequence to flash upon his screen, but it proved unnecessary.

“If your calculations say it's the thing to do, then I'm sure you're right.” Knock Out said, walking over to the shelf where the jar with the shard was standing. “I was hoping to get some more time to make these experiments, to see if we could use this in a safer way, but I guess you have even better use for it.”

Surely that was an attempt at buying time, to get Soundwave to reconsider his decision and let Starscream have a chance to misplace the shard, just to stay in power. The UAV would not fall for that. He snatched the jar with the shard from Knock Out's servo, leaving the medbay as silent and dark as a wraith, a communication jammer left in his wake to make sure he had the time he needed.

Megatron waited for him, and the stillness made him pause for long seconds, because it was so unfamiliar to have the impatient Warlord waiting for him. _Not just unfamiliar; unnatural._

The Drone shuddered in discomfort, and shook himself out of his stupor. _Megatron shouldn't have to wait for him to come to a conclusion, a decision. Not if he wanted to pride himself on being a loyal and good Decepticon, devoted to the cause. Every second spent dawdling gave Knock Out more time to alert Starscream of what he was going to do, every second was another testament to how he didn't trust his Lord. To what a failure he was._

For the second time in under one of the planet's rotations, Soundwave latched one of his data cables to one of his Lord's sockets and hooked up to his systems, this time for something much more intimate than merely extending a spike, and doing so without given consent almost made him queasy — almost, but not quite — because as bad as the implications were, he was doing this to get his Lord back, to revive Megatron, and surely that would be a given, and not something the Warlord would hold against Soundwave later?

Pushing the thoughts aside with conviction, Soundwave accessed the protocols, and sent the command to open Megatron's chest-plates. They slid aside with a grinding noise, and the Drone winced at the way the petals covering Megatron's spark-chamber looked dull and slightly sunken. With a deep vent to steel himself, he sent the command to open them, and they irised apart to reveal the ember. Soundwave's own spark felt cold when he saw the sluggish and listless pulsations, timed with the life support systems that kept Megatron functioning.

_It truly was the only chance to get Megatron back._

With strengthened resolve, Soundwave picked the shard from his subspace, and reached out to put it in place. _The only way_.

_“NO!”_ Starscream called out, running through the doors, Knock Out hot on his heels.

Soundwave immediately dropped the shard in place to not let the meddling Seeker interfere. Megatron’s frame shuddered, and the petals to his chamber irised shut so quickly, it was a good thing that Soundwave hadn't reached inside to place the shard there more gently, or his digits would’ve been chopped off. A strange, croaking crackle rose from Megatron's vocalizer, and his frame jerked more violently.

“You _fool!_ What have you done?!” Starscream screeched, running up to him.

Soundwave retracted his data cable, and turned to the second in command. Behind him, Megatron's chest-plates ground shut again, safely encasing the shard inside his massive frame.

_“Megatron: inestimable to Decepticon cause.”_ He flashed on his screen, even if that wasn't necessarily the entire truth. Starscream could make an excellent leader, he had proven that.

“He's _not!_ Especially not when under the influence of dark energon! We have no idea what you're bringing back here!” Starscream yelled at him.

_“Megatron: rightful Leader of Decepticon cause.”_

“So you think we did that bad a job when he was lost in space? Do you _really_ think that we couldn't be better leaders than an energon-crazed junkie, fixing on dark energon of all things?!” Starscream ground out, narrowing his optics.

Then the Seeker’s optics brightened in a flash, the look on his face turning into one of alarm. Behind Soundwave, Megatron rose to sit.

“Well, well, it's good to know how little you really think of me, Starscream. I knew you were a duplicitous glitch, but to have it laid out in words like that is truly enlightening.” Megatron said, his optics glowing a menacing shade of bright purple.

A distressed sound left Starscream's vocalizer, and his wings quivered in terror.

“Oh, well, deactivated mechs can't stab me in the back, can they?” Megatron said contemplatively, calm and collected in a disturbingly uncharacteristic way as he mused out loud.

The Warlord rose from the berth, tearing free of the cables and lines to the life support systems still hooked up to his frame, and it got Starscream moving, scrambling to get out of the room. It was futile. Much quicker than someone just brought back from the brink of deactivation should be able to move, Megatron lunged for the fleeing Flier, tackling him to the ground. He straddled Starscream, planting his weight on the Seeker's aft to pin him down, and the Air Commander squeaked in terror and pain when one of his wings was grabbed.

“I'll make this slow, so you can truly enjoy when I finally deactivate you.” Megatron purred with disturbing relish, his wild field lashing with budding arousal.

Starscream screeched in agony, and Soundwave winced in sympathy when Megatron started bending that wing with a harsh sound of rending metal. He flicked his optics to Knock Out, who stood watching with a horrified look on his face, servos slightly raised, as if he wanted to help —or perhaps shield himself — but knew how powerless he was to do anything but be co-deactivated. _Knock Out had been on Starscream's side in this, if Megatron found out, the Medic may very well be deactivated too._

Starscream had not been right to want to deactivate Megatron, but offlining half the Officer cadre on the Nemesis — a majority of high command — wouldn't do, and Soundwave knew that he was the only one who could do something to stop Megatron. _The Warlord always listened to his reasons._

He stepped up to them, and put a servo on Megatron's pauldron. The Warlord whipped his helm around, servo pulled back, ready to punch whomever dared to interrupt him, but froze mid swing when he saw that it was Soundwave. His optics still narrowed dangerously, and he tilted his helm in silent question, making him look more like a beast than a mech.

_“Starscream: needed for Decepticon cause.”_ He wrote on his screen, because it was true. The Eradicons listened well to the Air Commander, and in spite of everything, Starscream was a good strategist, and could handle the dynamics of a battlefield very well.

“I'm sure we could find some random drone that would be able to replace him, Soundwave. Or perhaps you should take the position?” Megatron's voice was a dangerous hiss.

Soundwave couldn't tell if it was meant as an insult, but he decided that it probably wasn't. He would be the natural choice to climb in rank if Starscream was to be deactivated, especially since Breakdown wasn't ready take the spot as CMO, and they couldn't have a grounder as Air Commander, ruling out both Breakdown and Knock Out for that position.

_“Negative. Soundwave's frame suited for surveillance and data gathering. No suitable replacement, no time for more responsibilities.”_ They really were stretched too thin with mechs suited for command posts, and only another mech with a very specific frame configuration would be fit to take his job.

Megatron bent Starscream’s wing even more, making the Seeker whine in pain under him, still pleading for mercy, babbling away about how he didn't mean what he said. _The mech sure knew how to grovel._

“Very well, Soundwave. I won't deactivate him. But he will still be begging me to do that before I'm done, because this insolence will not go unpunished.”

_“Starscream: would be very thankful for mercy.”_

_If he got out of this with just the few dents he already had sustained, then maybe the Seeker would keep in line and out of trouble for a while?_

Megatron looked truly furious, but he let go of Starscream's wing and rose to his full height, staring down at Soundwave. He looked very intimidating, broad and powerful, with a laser focus on his third in command.

“You mean that I should just let this slip? This attempt at deactivating me?”

_“Starscream: only suggested to let you go with dignity.”_ Soundwave tried.

He couldn't help but notice Megatron's chaotic field. It was almost as if he had been aroused, and then left high and dry, left frustrated and unsatisfied. A warning bell sounded somewhere in Soundwave's processor, but he didn't pay it any mind, not at this point.

Megatron scoffed. “I'll let it go for now. But it'll be on your helm if this comes back to bite me in the aft. If he misses out on a lesson that would've kept him in line because of this mercy.”

It wasn't a condition Soundwave liked, but it was either that, or having Starscream laid out in the medbay for the foreseeable future, and that would be a problem, because Soundwave would be forced to do the Seeker's work anyway then. He dipped his helm in acknowledgement.

Megatron sniffed. “I have things to attend to. You all better get back to work right now.” He growled dismissively.

Knock Out and Starscream scrambled out of the room, almost tripping over each other in their haste, but Soundwave lingered for a moment. _Sure, he had things to do, but nothing pressing, and Lord Megatron, alive and well was such a sight to behold._

“What are you staring at?! I'll call you when I need you. We have things to work out later.” Megatron snarled with an ire Soundwave was not used to have directed at him.

The UAV quickly followed the other two Officers, not wanting to disappoint his Lord now that he was finally back. _He was the reason Megatron wound up in a coma in the first place, and how he was going to explain the reason for the defeat was a dread he hadn't thought about before._


	14. Chapter 14

It was decidedly late when Soundwave's comm crackled to life, and he flinched, not used to be called unexpectedly, and certainly not at that hour.

“Soundwave. Report to my quarters immediately.” Megatron's voice was oddly gravelly, but entirely welcome, because it made it crystal clear that Glorious Leader was indeed functioning, something Soundwave still found hard to grasp.

His spark spun quicker with exhilarated nerves, and Soundwave was glad that he had done a trip to the washracks as soon as he had finished the tasks for the day. _It wouldn't do to look shoddy when he finally got to see his Lord again, no matter what kind of meeting Megatron had planned. Late in the evening. In his private quarters._

Lazerbeak had been sent off on a surveillance mission earlier that day — _not at all in hopes that Megatron would summon him. No, not at all_ — Soundwave had refueled, and whatever his Lord wanted from him, he felt ready as he walked down the hallway towards his Commander's quarters.

_Except that the toys were still in his subspace_. The realization dawned on him like a harsh slap across his screen, and Soundwave came to an abrupt halt. Someone else had touched him like that, had brought him pleasure, even. _But Megatron had not been available at that moment, and the things were hurting him as it was_ … There was nothing he could do about it at that point, no time for getting them reinstalled. _And Megatron might not even want that kind of interaction. It was ludicrous to even hope for that after everything that had happened. Megatron never gave him that kind of attention so often._

He strode into Megatron’s quarters with his helm held high, back-strut straight. The Warlord was leaning against his desk. _No games of hide and seek this time._

“Come here, Soundwave.”

The Communications Officer came to a stop in front of Megatron and lowered his helm in supplication.

“You have displeased me, Soundwave.”

The UAV's helm snapped up in surprise. _He brought Megatron out of his coma, he had done his best! Did Megatron already know about his earlier failure, the one that started this mess?_

“Kneel.” The simple order brokered no argument, and Soundwave immediately obeyed. Megatron circled his third in command, servos clasped behind his back. “I never thought I’d see the day when you were the one to defy me.”

_Defy? What was he talking about?_

“I don’t like to be told what to do, and what not to. If I want to tear Starscream apart, who are you to interfere?”

_But Megatron agreed! He refrained from harming Starscream because he recognized the Seeker’s value, didn’t he?_ Soundwave’s spark started spinning faster, because he felt like he was swimming in unknown waters, dark and murky. He dropped his helm deeper.

“I need to punish you for this, of course. You’re not exempt from following the rules, nor are you to be let off when you misbehave.”

Soundwave's feelings clashed horribly at this. He was fully prepared to be held responsible if he really had tried to do something to defy his Lord, just as he thought a fair punishment would be in order if that was the case. He was ready to atone for his failure that lead to Megatron's grave injuries. But this was unfair.

_“Soundwave: protecting an asset for the Decepticon cause. Not meant as defiance.”_ He wrote on his screen and tilted his helm back to show Megatron. He still held his optics humbly downcast, not that Megatron would know.

“Yes, yes, but Starscream can work from the medbay, he has done so before. Someone needs to be punished, and since you decided that he should be let off the hook, _you're_ going to be punished instead.”

Soundwave's fuel pump hammered wildly. He had seen the state of Starscream after Lord Megatron's punishments, and he was not keen on trying out how it felt. _But then again, he did deserve to be punished for his failure, so maybe it was better to just get it over with, no matter how wrong the reasons for this punishment was?_

The UAV was not prepared when a dark hood fell over his helm, robbing him of his sight. He gasped a surprised vent, adjusting to the lack of visual input.

“I know that you — as the nosey little fucker you are — don't enjoy being robbed of your senses, so some of your privileges are hereby revoked.” Megatron rumbled.

There was a tingling as the only warning — almost like suction — when a disrupter was placed close to one of his proximity sensors, and Soundwave shuddered in discomfort when it magnetized in place. Another one followed close to his next set of sensors, and his spark spun quicker as he was robbed of his peripheral awareness. He was down to feeling direct touch, his hearing was left, and he could still teek Megatron's EM field. The Communications Officer felt his legs trembling with nerves, an uncomfortable fluttering in his tank.

And then Megatron placed the next one on the main sensory wire in his neck, leaving him unable to feel his frame. Apparently, he could still move, because Soundwave jerked without feeling it, falling over from the movement. _Or did his Lord push him?_

“Stay still! You can still move, but you can't feel your frame so you better keep still, or things may turn very uncomfortable for you.” Megatron warned harshly.

Soundwave set his hydraulics to flow with minimal pressure to basically make his own frame go limp, even if the entire situation made him want to fight claw and denta to get away from it all. _But a punishment was in order, and he should try to make his Lord satisfied, so he wouldn't need to be punished again._

It sounded like he was rearranged, and Soundwave's vents started coming fast and ragged when he was getting more and more uncomfortable with the situation. With his screen covered, he couldn't even beg for mercy. The only thing to ground him was Megatron's field — lashing with arousal and an ugly amusement that left a sour taste in Soundwave's intake — and the ragged vents of the Warlord.

“I know how much you have missed my spike, so I think it's a fair punishment to deny you the pleasure of having it, while still allowing you to provide me with an opportunity for release.”

There was the click of a latch, and the slide of a panel, but Soundwave had no way of knowing if it was Megatron's panel, or if his Lord had manually opened Soundwave's own.

“You have removed the toys.” Megatron said flatly, the lack of intonation as worrying as the sudden flatness of his field. “Such a whore, couldn't even wait for me to wake up, could you? Well, there's no way I will have you without cleaning you out.” Megatron's field turned smug as he strode away with heavy steps, and Soundwave could do nothing but wait, venting shallowly to try to listen for clues as to what his Lord was going to do.

The Drone pulled up the data from all his potentiometers to try to determine his position. His knees where bent in a way that suggested that he was on his back, and Megatron hadn't moved him, so he was probably laying on the floor. Megatron returned, and maybe he touched Soundwave's frame when he did, but the Communications Officer couldn't feel anything. There was a trickle of fluid, a smell of solvent — his olfactory sensors still allowed input — and then Soundwave scrunched up his face-plates in mortification. True to his word, Megatron was cleaning him out. The sound of the trickle turned into a steadier stream, and Megatron chuckled.

“Your field tells me everything, and I'm surprised that you would be this embarrassed about a simple valve cleaning. Surely you didn't think I wanted to stick my cock into the filthy base transport?”

The utter lack of control over his frame was hard for Soundwave to handle, he was a mech who thrived on input of all kinds, and now he was robbed of most. That he was forced to remain still of his own volition made it even worse, and he really just wanted it to be over.

Megatron's ragged vents, and a grunt next to his audial told Soundwave that his Lord was on top of him. The clang of metal against metal revealed that they were indeed interfacing, even if Soundwave couldn't feel anything, and suddenly, he felt robbed of the experience.

_He may have been ambivalent about their earlier times together, the games his Lord had played, but they had brought him pleasure nonetheless, hard overloads that sent him into reboot, and still he had been uncertain about their encounters. He had been such a prude, such a whimp. Here he was, finally serving his Lord again, and now he couldn't even feel it. What was a little discomfort compared to nothing at all? No, he really had to be a better servant, needed to obey his Lord to earn the pleasure it brought him._

Above him, Megatron grunted, and a pop-up message in Soundwave's HUD told him that his Lord had overloaded. Megatron's field moved away, leaving the UAV on the floor in his prone position.

“I hope you're learning your lesson, Soundwave.” Megatron said, voice scratchy with post-interface static.

Soundwave sent commands to the hydraulics in his neck to nod his helm, and the gauges told him that the movement was successful, but it felt strange to not actually feel his frame do it.

“Good. I'm not finished, though. You have to understand why I consider this such a severe overstep from you. You undermined my authority. In front of not one, but two of your fellow Officers, you openly defied me. It is _unacceptable,_ Soundwave. Both Starscream and Knock Out have a hard-on for climbing up the ranks, and you showed them not only that they can object to my decisions, but also that Starscream got away with trying to deactivate me to take the throne for himself.”

_He had not considered that aspect. He saved Starscream because he didn't like the way Megatron was careless with his own crew, especially since nobody around had the competence to fill the position as Air Commander of the Decepticons, not without extensive education that would take quite some time. But that was the reason Lord Megatron was the leader, and he was merely the third in command. Lord Megatron was the one who thought of the aspects he didn't consider, looked at everything from angles he didn't even know existed. And once again, his Lord was right. He had fragged up, he really deserved this punishment._

Soundwave relaxed, even though he still was apprehensive about not feeling anything from his frame, or his surroundings. _His Lord was here, so nothing could happen to him_.

“I know you well, Soundwave, and I know that you will want to process this very thoroughly to come to your own conclusions, even though I'm right. So I will grant you that time, and leave you to it. I need to top up my levels of dark energon anyway, but I will be back when I'm ready to have you again.”

Soundwave's spark lurched with that statement, because he was anything but certain that more dark energon would be a good idea, he needed to run calculations for that. _Did Megatron even have more dark energon? They had thought that the small shard was the only piece left._ And then his tank roiled in an alarming way, threatening to make him purge, and Soundwave was not in the best position to deal with that. _His Lord was going to leave him there, all alone, in a quiet room, with no other EM field to latch on to_. It was one of those moments when he really wanted to activate his vocalizer again, if only to allow his pleas to spill over his lips. _But it had been deactivated as part of a deal with Rumble and Frenzy — to get them to do it too, to keep them quiet and safe throughout a mission, he vowed to keep his inactive too until they returned — right before they were sent on what turned out to be their last mission, and he had kept it offline out of respect for them when they didn’t return. He was not going to break his mournful silence for his own discomfort, they had suffered their ends in silence, and so would he._

The Drone heard the Warlord's heavy pedesteps, and the door opening to let him out. The steps continued down the hallway, and the door slid shut, a slight grinding before it locked in place, and everything was silent in the well isolated Commander’s quarters, not even a glitchmouse's skittering paws over the floor to distract him. The humming of the engines didn't reach him in there, and everything inside seemed to be shut off, because even with his audials cranked up to their most sensitive setting, all he could hear was his own vents, and somehow, that just wasn't enough to ground him, just like the energon roaring through his lines was not.

He extended his field as much as he could, singularly focusing on it in hopes of finding something, _anything,_ to distract him.

Soundwave learnt something right then: apparently, inert objects could sometimes be felt with the field, almost as a vague echo of something that was far away, and long gone by the time the echo reached him, but it was nowhere near enough to keep him comfortable. His vents picked up, and his HUD flashed an information pop-up about an increase in temperature, but there wasn’t much he could do but let his cooling system handle it.

His cooling fans kicked on, and Soundwave listened to the sounds of his own frame to keep himself from panicking, but his frame could be floating in space for all he knew. _No, because in space, his frame wouldn't make any sounds, and he would not overheat. Probably._

Hours droned by, with nothing but angst to keep him company, too many thoughts swimming in his processor, his spark spinning too quickly, and it felt like eternity passed as he laid there, all alone.

_He missed the twins, the mayhem that always surrounded them, the way their quarters were never quiet like this, this was like the Pit, except nobody was screaming in pain, they were all silent. His own personal Pit._

_Glorious Leader did this, and the Decepticon leader had all right to do it, because he has been a very bad subordinate, had been distracted, and fragged up plans, and nearly gotten his Lord deactivated with his recklessness, and then he defied Megatron, showed the constant usurper, and his wingman without wings, that it was possible to get away with standing up to Lord Megatron._

_If only Ravage was still around, she would crawl in and keep him company, she'd purr her engines to give him some sort of comfort, and her field would extend to lace with his, would ground him in the reality he can't feel._

_This will never happen again, he's going to be such a good subordinate, he's going to obey and support his Lord, as he should, and he will be allowed to serve, won't give his Master a reason to punish him again…_

The door slid open with a familiar swoosh, ending with a light grinding noise, and the heavy tread of his Lord echoed through the room. Soundwave shuddered in relief, and when their field's mingled, he gasped in pleasure. Megatron's field was heavy and dense with arousal, smugness, and a sliver of something unpleasant that Soundwave couldn't quite place, but he had noticed it before. It didn't matter. Anything was better than nothing, so Soundwave embraced that field, let his own cling to it desperately, pushing his apologies, his remorse, and all the devotion he could out through his field for Megatron to teek.

“I see you have taken this lesson exactly as you should. Good. I will grant you your tactile sensors back, but the hood stays on for now.”

Soundwave's intake fell open in a silent moan when the disrupters were removed, and suddenly he could feel the cold floor against his back, the servo stroking the plating of his thigh, and the hot exvents against his chest-plates.

_Hopefully, he would be allowed to serve his Lord again, because the deprivation left him sensitized, and that servo stroking without finesse felt better than anything he had felt before, so very welcome after the nothingness, and he wanted…_

“I’ll fuck you now, Soundwave. And you're going to love it.”

_He really would._


	15. Chapter 15

”We have finally managed to locate Breakdown, my Lord. Turns out he has not gone AWOL of his own accord; the human organization called MECH has caught him. We're requesting permission to extract him.” It was in the morning meeting Starscream laid the case out with the certainty of a mech convinced that they would get permission to put his plan into motion.

Soundwave watched the Warlord cock his helm, looking thoroughly unimpressed as he considered the request, and the Drone couldn't help but feel slightly worried about it. _Surely Megatron had to see that freeing Breakdown would be the most logical course of action? The ex-Wrecker was one of their strongest fighters, and on top of that, he had acquired valuable skills as a medical assistant. And permitting a rescue mission would certainly strengthen Knock Out's loyalty to their faction._

“No. If he managed to be so weak as to let the tiny organics catch him, then he really should prove himself a worthy Decepticon and get himself out of there. If he can't, he's useless to me anyway.” Megatron dismissed it all without much thought.

Knock Out's intake tightened into a thin line, and Soundwave caught the alarmed flare of his field before the CMO managed to reign it in. The Communication’s Officer’s spark clenched. He could understand the worry all too well, had experienced it when his Symbionts were too deep into a mission to be contacted, or the times they had been caught. _And he knew all too well that ‘being caught' might lead to ‘never coming back'._ That line of thought brought a spark deep ache he was all too familiar with by now.

“Surely you can appreciate what he has done for us this far into the war? We should get him, should show him that being a Decepticon does pay off, and that loyalty to the cause earns him favors back!” Starscream drawled, not ready to give up that easily.

“Loyalty?! What ever could you possibly know about _loyalty,_ you traitorous, backstabbing nuisance?!”

“I know a lot about what make mechs lose their loyalty to something!” Starscream sneered. Then he turned to Soundwave. “You know as well as I do that trying to get Breakdown back would impact all of our faction. Breakdown is kind of friends with the Vehicons and the Eradicons. We would show everyone that our soldiers are valuable. And that may make a huge difference for their level of conviction in a battle.”

It was a valid point. Megatron had proven himself even more reckless with his soldiers' lives than he was before he was blown into a coma, and the troops were getting increasingly hesitant about their cause, often merely following orders out of fear for the repercussions. Keeping them in line that way may provide a breeding ground for treasonous thoughts, and a wave of desertions. Soundwave wanted to agree with Starscream and Knock Out, he really did. A rescue mission would be the right thing to do, but this time, he wasn't willing to publicly support them. _The punishment he got the last time he took Starscream’s side was still in fresh memory, and he did not want to get on Megatron's bad side again._

“We can't waste our resources on a simple mech who got caught by no fault but his own.” Megatron concluded, ending the entire discussion without sparing Soundwave a glance for input.

_“Megatron: right.”_ He simply wrote on his visor to answer Starscream, even if it left a bad taste in his intake.

The Seeker glared at him, looking like he wanted to tear Soundwave's visor off just to be able to scratch his optics out. ::This is wrong, and you know it! What's the matter Soundwave? Spend one night in Megatron's quarters, and all of a sudden you think you're his conjux, is that it? You spread your legs, and suddenly your processor is in your array, and you're even more of his nodding puppet than before?:: Starscream sneered over a private comm line.

There was something bitter there — something Soundwave may even pin down as jealousy, if he thought hard enough about it — but right then, he was too preoccupied with convincing himself about how _wrong_ Starscream was. _He was_ not _his Lord's_ puppet! _He just knew which battles to pick. A little sense of self-preservation wasn't a vice. Though Starscream would hardly know anything about that, or he wouldn't be forced to plead for his functioning every other day, now, would he?_ Soundwave didn't deign to answer the second in command, and the Seeker knew that it would be pointless to try to needle the Communications Officer. 

Suddenly, a warning about a breach of security popped up in Soundwave's HUD. He redirected most of his processor power to investigate it, letting an automated program keep track of what was being said in the meeting. They were still discussing Breakdown's predicament, and the UAV definitely felt that an intrusion had higher priority, because his standpoint would officially be with Megatron, no matter how much he privately agreed with Starscream.

The more data he gathered from the surveillance systems, the more it pointed to an actual intruder, not just one of the small spy drones the Autobots sometimes used. It was alarming if he was right. Just the day before, he had declared to his Lord that the ship was impenetrable, that the Autobot's wouldn't be able to get in. _Lord Megatron would not be pleased if it turned out that he had failed him again._ The right thing to do would be to tell Megatron about this immediately — to be _honest_ — and maybe have a chance at getting out of this meeting to intercept the intruder. _But then his Lord might think that Soundwave had done a sloppy job, or even worse; lied about the quality of his work, and he would probably face a much worse punishment than the last one._

“How easy it would be, if all my subordinates were as loyal as you, Soundwave.” Megatron’s voice broke him out of his musings, and he whipped his helm around to notice that they were alone in the meeting room. “I think you deserve a reward for being such a good subordinate, for standing by my side. Like you should.” Megatron rumbled as he walked around the table to come to a stop behind Soundwave.

The Communications Officer's systems pinged him another alert. _Starscream's voice uttering 'behind the tyrant's back' in a hallway triggered his treason detection program._ Habitually, he zoned in on the conversation to find Starscream and Knock Out discussing an unauthorized rescue mission of Breakdown. _Good. It was an act of treason Soundwave could get behind, and something he didn't need to keep track of at this instant._ He turned his attention back to the signs of intrusion, and from what he could gather, the supposed mech in a vent, or however he was getting in, was heading their way. _If only Lazerbeak had been on the ship. He could've sent her to investigate._

A big servo petting his helm-fin interrupted him and made his focus on the intruder falter for long seconds. Megatron leaned in closer, his vents tickling Soundwave's audial, and his own vents hitched when Megatron's other servo reached between his legs. He vaguely registered that the intruder’s advances seemed to have stopped, or maybe he somehow had managed to dampen his systems even more, because suddenly his presence was undetectable. _Was he above them, looking down at what his Lord was doing to him?_

“Get up on the table. I'll give you your reward. We both know that loyal servants get rewards, no matter what Starscream says, don't we? On your servos and knees, panel open.”

_Admit his failure or not? He would be denied this pleasure, but what was worse was that Megatron might find him unworthy of his love. If he obeyed quickly, he could still deal with the intruder, and Megatron would be impressed instead, and he wouldn't have to be punished, because making it right would even out the wrong. Right?_

He quickly crawled up on the table, getting into position. Opening his panel for Megatron's scrutiny felt much easier now than it had before. _His frame was for his Lord to command, and it wasn't something Megatron hadn't seen before. And now he knew the importance of appreciating whatever his Lord deigned to grant him._ The new chastity toy Megatron had installed inside him the last time they were together unlocked with a click and slipped out of him.

“You have been very good Soundwave, abstaining from whoring yourself out to others. You're mine.” Megatron said, field lashing with possessiveness. 

Soundwave preened at the praise, arching his back, and Megatron’s servo slowly stroked his aft and down to his thigh, the tips of the Warlord's digits grazing the slit of his valve along the way. The UAV shuddered with pleasure, array heating up quickly from the attention his Lord was paying him. A single digit slipped into him, rubbing the front wall of his valve with teasingly light touches, and behind his screen, Soundwave's intake fell open in a silent gasp. _His Lord could be so attentive and generous with pleasure when he deserved it._ The Surveillance mech pointedly ignored the breach of security he had not mentioned. _He would deal with it as soon as they were done here. Megatron didn't need to worry about it, he had more important things to manage. It was Soundwave’s responsibility anyway._

Another digit was added, and he rocked back against the servo, eager for more. Megatron chuckled behind him, curling his digits inside Soundwave to hit that sensitive spot that made the Drone's hips jerk uncontrollably.

“So eager and pliant. Fuck yourself on my digits. I want to see you claim your reward for being such a good little subordinate.”

Complying was easy, and there was something immensely satisfying in being praised by Megatron, and the way his Lord's field caressed him with growing arousal. _Glorious leader got turned on by watching him. How could he ever have felt embarrassed by being seen like this? His Lord found him attractive like this, happily serving, being rewarded for his good behavior._ Behind his screen, Soundwave bit down on his lip-plate, panting silently as he pushed back against that servo with increasingly quick movements. Megatron shifted his servo to let Soundwave press his node against his thumb every time he rocked back, and the Communications Officer shifted to shorter, quicker movements to chase his impending overload.

“That's right, cum for me, my pet. You're so good.” Megatron purred.

It did it for him. With his speakers crackling of static and humming uncontrollably, Soundwave overloaded. His arms gave out, and he toppled over, landing on his side, fans on full blast as he rested limply on the conference table.

“You're very arousing when you surrender to me. But now _I_ have a load waiting to be emptied. Will you supply me with a place to rid myself of it?”

The question tickled Soundwave's hesitance, because the lack of details of what Megatron was really asking for pointed to it being something he wasn't going to enjoy going along with. _But he really shouldn't be an ungrateful subordinate when Lord Megatron had just been so generous. And hadn't he recently learned the hard way that he should treasure every time his Lord showed interest in him?_

He nodded. _Of course he would take care of his Lord's needs._

Megatron grinned sharply and grabbed his thighs, rolling Soundwave to lay on his back, then he pulled him closer. A big servo curled around the Drone's slender hip and easily lifted his aft off the table, closer to the height of Megatron’s now pressurized spike. _The dark energon really made his Lord stronger. Megatron had always been strong, but that he so easily lifted Soundwave with one servo was new._

“Yes, my little cum bucket. You'll get every drop of my fluids, and I'll graciously give you the honor of keeping them.”

_What?_

Soundwave expected Megatron to slide into his dripping wet valve, but the Warlord only grabbed his own spike, slowly stroking it, his grin widening into something feral that made the UAV's spark hiccup. He laid there, frozen, and even if Megatron luckily couldn't tell, he was unable to break optic contact, even as Megatron's smile turned nasty, that victoriously gleeful gloating overtaking his field.

The Decepticon leader pushed inside, just the head of his spike, and Soundwave felt the rush of fluid filling him up, staying trapped inside his valve with the angle Megatron held him tilted in. Then Megatron's spike retracted as soon as he had emptied himself, and the Warlord plucked something from his subspace. He held up the little marble for Soundwave to look at — just long enough for him to see the orb, but not enough to figure out what it was — and then it was slowly pushed into him, slow enough to not push any of the fluids out. Megatron fiddled with something else he had hidden in his servo, and Soundwave felt when it was fitted around the rim of his valve, magnetizing in place.

“There, all set for todays work, my pet. I expect you to come to my quarters tonight with this still in place. And Soundwave?” He stared expectantly at the Communications Officer until Soundwave nodded to show that he was paying attention. “I _will_ know if you remove this before then, even if you remount it afterwards.”

With that, he dropped Soundwave's hip and saw himself out of the room without sparing the UAV another glance. Soundwave stared after his Lord until the door slid shut behind Megatron, leaving him alone on the table — panel still open — and he chastised himself. _He had completely lost track of surveillance. Anyone could've come in — maybe even had done so without him noticing — and still could._ Putting a process back on finding the intruder, Soundwave locked the door and sat up, looking down to see the new device placed on him. _A seal._ The Drone frowned. _Why had Megatron done that? And from what he understood, he could remove it. He was just expected not to._ Closing his panel, he got up from the table to leave, remotely opening the door, and he stepped out into the hallway, dismayed when he couldn't find a single sign of the intruder on any of the ship's surveillance systems. 

That's when the marble inside him started to vibrate.


	16. Chapter 16

It was a miserably long day. Soundwave occupied himself with simultaneously keeping track of the plans for Breakdown's rescue that was being made without their Lord's approval, and trying to find the intruder. He did catch a few blips from his systems here and there, but they were few and far between, and every time he actually got a lock on the location and pulled the data from the sensors close to it, the mech was already gone. It was worrying, because few Autobots would manage to pull an infiltration like that off — and on top of that successfully avoid Soundwave. His conclusion was that it had to be someone from SpecOps. Even then, he felt certain enough about the level of his surveillance to narrow it down to either Mirage, or Jazz — because he refused to think that he had somehow overseen a new agent of the same caliber. He hadn't known that any of them was even in the solar system, but obviously, at least one of them had shipped in, and that was cause for concern in itself. _He really should take this to Megatron. But he really didn't want to. Not yet. He could still catch the mech by himself._

If only he hadn't had that disgusting distraction inside him. _Transfluid sloshing around, the little orb vibrating away_. Put together, it teased him, but didn't stimulate enough to bring him over. What was even worse was that the longer his arousal kept going, the more he lubricated, and the seal effectively stopped it from running out of his valve. Soundwave had always hated the feeling of his panel getting slick and wet, but at that point, he would take that inconvenience any day. _How glorious it would have been to be able to just wipe the wetness away with a cloth, instead of being forced to feel himself get more and more full and sloshing as the day wore on._

It would've been easy to remove the seal, empty his valve, and then return it. _Perhaps the vibrator would bring him over without the viscous fluid acting as a damper?_ He'd probably lubricate enough to be at least partially filled up again by the time he was supposed to report to Megatron's quarters. But there would be a distinct lack of transfluid mixed into the fluids that would vacate his valve when Megatron pulled the seal away.

_Perhaps he could refill himself when his shift was over? Go to the washracks now and empty himself. Then return the seal, and wait for him to fill up enough with lubricant. After shift, he could self service, catch his transfluid in a container, and funnel it into his valve before putting the seal over it again. He'd have to keep his hips elevated… Maybe if he had his shoulders on the floor, and put his pedes on his berth? Just push a funnel into himself and pour his own transfluid inside._

Soundwave shook his helm to refocus on his work. He had spent over half an hour trying to figure out how he to succeed with filling himself with his own transfluid, staring blankly at the surveillance screens. _That was unacceptable_. Overcome with guilt, he focused back on trying to get the rat out of the vents. _Lord Megatron would be so disappointed and displeased if he found out how badly his third in command was performing his job. Not to mention how intensely he was thinking about ways to cheat in his Lord's games and tests._

With strengthened resolve, the UAV threw himself back into his work. There was another ping from a sensor — all the way across the ship, of course — and he hurried down the hallway as fast as he could, in spite of his increasing fullness.

It was a very strange sensation, because he instinctively felt an urge to clench down to keep it inside, even if he logically knew that the seal made it impossible for the fluids to escape him. The resulting twitching of his calipers, and a subsequent urge to hold his legs together, made it awkward to try to walk at an efficient pace. Soundwave's frame wanted to waddle, not hurry along the corridor at a brisk walk _. How was he supposed to do his job like this_? The Communications Officer came to an abrupt halt. _Lord Megatron was testing his ability to set his mind over matter. Of course. How could he have missed that?_

And that meant that he better get ahold of the fragging Autobot snooping around. He would not fall victim to self pity. He was Lord Megatron's best subordinate, the most loyal Decepticon — _no matter what the blasted smooth talker of a tank would say about it_ — and he was not going to fail his Lord, or the cause.

With new determination, he ignored the impulses of his frame and set off down the hallway, deliberately lengthening his strides in defiance. _The seal would hold. And if it did not, so be it._ He made it around the next corner, then his wireless connection to the systems pinged him with a new alert of a tripped security sensor. _Across the ship in the other direction_. This could not be just one mech, it was impossible that someone could be that fast in the vents, still keeping so quiet. _Either there were several intruders, or the mech had managed to do something to send him on a wild glitch goose chase back and forth._ Grinding denta behind his screen, Soundwave returned to the bridge to come up with a new strategy.

Ruthlessly stomping down the urges of his frame, he poured himself into checking every camera, every sensor, every single piece of spyware that was a part of the security systems of the Nemesis, but not matter how many times he checked, double checked, and checked again, he couldn't find anything pointing to the Spy actually still being aboard the ship. _He failed. He let himself be too distracted in the initial stage of the intrusion, and now the mech had already done what he was there for, and escaped._

Desperate to do something to make up for his disastrous frag up, he scoured all his sensors for signs that the ship had been bugged or sabotaged, all the while spying on Starscream and Knock Out. Starscream was a good strategist, and their plans seemed to be along what Soundwave would've suggested, so the Communications Officer saw no need to get involved. He would do what he could to make sure Lord Megatron didn't find out, but if he showed Starscream that he was on their side, the Seeker might try to get his support in other situations too, and he could not afford to make Megatron question his loyalty.

He turned his focus back on the security, spending the afternoon with recalibrating everything, pointedly trying to ignore the increasing fullness inside him, or the way his ventral plating was starting to bulge with the rising levels of lubricant filling his valve. The time dragged on, and he wanted nothing but to get out of his chair, but even if he could excuse himself to manually check every piece of the surveillance systems — something that would've kept him occupied, and would’ve made the time move faster — it wasn't an option anymore. Looking down at his swollen midriff, he knew that it would not go unnoticed, even if he managed to move normally when meeting someone.

::Oh, Soundwave…:: Megatron sing-songed over their private comm. ::Get your aft to my quarters.::

The UAV slumped in relief. _Finally._ He rose from his chair, careful to stick to the shadows along the wall when he snuck out to minimize the risk that someone would notice the visible change to his form. Still hooked up to the surveillance cameras, he started to navigate the corridors. On a couple of occasions, he was forced to step into storage units, or deliberately take a wrong turn to avoid others from the crew, and his progress was slow and awkward as it was almost impossible to walk normally now. It felt like forever before he finally found himself outside Megatron's quarters.

The door slid open, and he waddled inside, caution be damned. Megatron laid sprawled on his berth, a feral grin stretching his toothy intake when his third in command came inside.

“I see that you have been good.”

_Not really, but he couldn't find any signs of sabotage, or spyware left behind when he swept the ship, so Megatron didn't need to know that. No harm, no foul._

Megatron came to stand in front of him, looking down at his swollen midriff, and Soundwave couldn't resist the urge to squirm in discomfort. A silver servo stroked the bulging plating and then Megatron pressed. Soundwave instinctively crossed his legs, because it felt kind of like he needed to void, and at the same time different, but either way, it was decidedly uncomfortable. Megatron grinned when he heard the strained whine from Soundwave's engine.

“Do you want it out of you?”

Soundwave nodded vigorously.

“Well, I think you have earned it. Come.”

Megatron walked into his private washracks with easy movements, and Soundwave followed much more awkwardly.

“Open your panel.”

He snapped it open immediately, not wanting this to last a second longer than necessary. Megatron snickered.

“Eager as usual.”

The Warlord reached between Soundwave's legs and hooked a digit around the edge of the seal. There was a strange pull on the rim of his valve, and then a trickle of fluid down his legs had the UAV's valve clamping down to stop it. It slowed down, but he wasn't fully able to keep it from dribbling out. Megatron’s grin widened as he stared where their mingled fluids drooled out of Soundwave, running down his legs, trickling into seams and along protoform to pool on the floor.

_It felt glorious to get it out._

_It was absolutely mortifyingly humiliating._

To finally get rid of the fullness that had teased his sensors all day was such a relief, Soundwave shuddered in pleasure. But to have all the fluids dribbling down his legs, to stand in the warm puddle of transfluid and lubricant, and to have Lord Megatron watch it closely, was almost unbearably humiliating.

“I see that you have lubricated quite a lot, Soundwave. Such a horny slut, getting so wet just from having your Master's cum inside you.” Megatron mocked.

Soundwave lowered his visor, feeling filthy when the last globs of fluids finally slid out of him. The vibrating little marble inside him came to rest at the bottom of his valve, the vibrations much stronger when it wasn't floating freely in fluid anymore. His hips twitched.

“Will you overload from just standing there with the toy inside?”

He wished that he wouldn't, that the answer would be 'no', but he had been running a low charge for the entire day, and now that he finally got some more stimulation… _Oh, he would overload so hard in just a few minutes. If only he could bring himself to lie to his Lord, could tell him no, and make Megatron take it out and let him wash up…_

He nodded, because if he lied, Megatron might test him. _His Lord would find out that Soundwave was a bad subordinate._

The Decepticon leader snorted. “Of course you would. But I won't let you. Stand around here, that is. Come on, we have places to be.” Megatron said, walking out of the washracks.

Hesitantly, Soundwave followed. _He really would’ve liked to wash up before they did anything more._

Megatron didn't go to his berth. Nor did he head for the desk. No, he headed for the door, and it slid open as he approached. Soundwave froze just outside the door to the washracks.

“Come on, Soundwave. I thought we could use the communal washracks to clean you up. Let's go.”

_He would have to go down the corridor covered in fluids. And the vibrator was still buzzing inside him… There was no chance that he wouldn’t overload before they even reached the washracks, possibly with half the crew watching._

The Communications Officer shook his helm.

Megatron's optics narrowed dangerously, and he cocked his helm, intake pulling to a sneer.

“Did you just defy me, Soundwave?”

He wanted to say 'no', because surely, there had to be a line for what he had to do for his Lord. _But refusing to do what his Lord asked him to was the definition of defiance._

_“Yes.”_ He flashed across his screen.

The door slammed shut when Megatron turned on his heel and strode back towards him, a dangerous scowl marring his handsome face-plates. “Why, _Soundwave,_ I'm very disappointed in you. I would expect something like this from Starscream, but not from _you_.”

Soundwave stood still and silent as Megatron approached, trying to figure out how he could convey that he didn't want to make Megatron disappointed, but he just couldn't do the things that was asked of him. _There had to be limits to what indignities he could be expected to suffer for his Lord_. He pushed his apology into his field and lowered his screen in deference.

Megatron's backhand impacted with the side of his helm, hard enough to snap his helm to the side before he lost balance and clattered to the floor. Both his optics and screen flickered violently, and Soundwave struggled to get his bearings, to comprehend what had actually happened. The Warlord had never turned his violence against Soundwave before, and the third in command was reeling in shock and disbelief, all the while trying to get his systems to function properly again.

A pede landed against his ventral plating, knocking the vents out of him, and the UAV curled up around the pain. Megatron grabbed one of his helm-fins and dragged him up to sit with his back against the wall, making Soundwave's optics momentarily black out from the agonizing grip.

“I’ll teach you the price of defiance, you ungrateful Drone. You would be _nothing_ without me, would still be a slave in the pits of Kaon, spending your nights sold off to nobles who wanted to fuck the winning gladiator. Never forget that.” Megatron hissed, vents hot against Soundwave's audial.

Even though Soundwave was hesitant to do anything against his Lord, his spark was spinning quickly in fear, and all his survival coding was screaming at him to fight back. _He had fought Megatron to a tie before, and defending himself couldn't be seen as defiance, right? He just needed his Lord stunned long enough to calm down and see reason._

He extended his data cables to give Megatron a shock to send him to the ground, but the Warlord was quicker and stronger than Soundwave anticipated. His cables were snatched by a harsh servo, and Megatron let go of his helm-fin, just to get a new grip across his throat-cables. Soundwave shuddered from the pain, the agonized scream stuck in his disconnected vocalizer when Megatron squeezed his sensitive data cables, his servo carefully avoiding the connectors the Communications Officer would use to transmit the current.

“Ah-ah, you coward. That's _cheating_.” Megatron snarled through clenched denta, a nasty grin twisting his intake. 

Soundwave clawed at Megatron’s servos, writhing to free himself, but with increasing fear, he realized that they weren't as evenly matched as they had once been. The servo around his neck tightened slowly, restricting the energon to his CPU, keeping the air from flowing through his vents to cool his processor. The Drone began to panic, desperately flailing to free himself from Megatron's grasp. The Warlord leaned in closer, that predatory grin pressed against Soundwave's screen.

“You're _mine,_ Soundwave, and you will do what I command. Disobedience comes with consequences, surely you understand that?”

The voice seemed more and more distant as Soundwave's systems started to shut down, darkness creeping in on the edges of his consciousness, and he could feel his struggles get more and more feeble, arms feeling too heavy to lift. 

_Was Megatron going to offline him?_ The thought didn't scare him much, Soundwave sluggishly wondered about what would come next, though. _Would it be nothingness forever, or would he get to see his symbionts again, his beloved family? But Lazerbeak was still alive, and she would be left behind if he offlined now, left without anyone to dock with, to slowly wither, if the war didn't claim her first…_

_“Please…”_ He wrote on his visor, at least he thought he did. _It was so hard to think when all his systems were shutting down._

“Beg all you want, Soundwave, but ultimately, you get what you deserve. Defying your Master…” Megatron muttered, and it was hard to say if he was actually addressing Soundwave at all.

The Communications officer's optic feed cut out, and he didn't see the Warlord's servo be raised again, nor did he feel the impact to his helm that sent him into unconsciousness.


End file.
